A neighbour has been left heartbroken and angry over repeated crashes along a busy road in Reading.
Kings Road is one of the busiest in the town, serving as a major arterial route and the home of Reading College.
A series of crashes that have resulted in injuries have occurred over the years, with two happening last week alone.
A teenage boy on a motorcycle was involved in a crash with a Nissan Juke and a Nissan Qashqai at approximately 1.20pm on Thursday, February 12.
He sadly suffered very serious injuries which require hospital treatment.
The following day, a teenage girl was seriously injured after being hit by a bus.
She is currently in hospital following the crash reported at about 5.10pm on Friday, February 13.
Eleanora Galli, who lives in nearby Orts Road, has recently called for safety measures to make crossing safer after her son was injured in the road in 2021.
Reacting to the news, Mrs Galli said: “Hearing about another crash on King’s Road, has left me, to be honest, both heartbroken and angry.
“Just a week ago, I stood in front of the council and warned them this was a tragedy waiting to happen again, and unfortunately, it happened again.
“We have to ask the council, how many more families have to get that phone call before they admit that 30 miles per hour on this road is very, very dangerous?
“The impact of a crash at 30 miles per hour is twice as destructive as one at 20.
“I reiterate my appeal for an immediate 20mph limit on King’s Road, especially in the bus lane, where traffic is often the most dangerous for pedestrians, because whether it’s a pedestrian or a person on a motorcycle, the result of 30mph is the same: serious injury or maybe worse.
“We are talking about a 60‑second delay for a car versus the life‑changing impact on a motorcyclist who has no protection, and I think we need to stop prioritising a minute of travel time over the physical safety of people.”
Councillor Kathryn McCann (Green, Redlands), who represents the area, said: “I was horrified on Friday evening to hear that someone had been hit by a bus on Kings Road for the second day running. My thoughts are with everyone affected.
“This situation is out of control and the council really needs to take action to address it. Too many people have been killed and injured here to ignore.
“Just last month Mrs Galli, whose son had been seriously injured in a crash on Kings Road, came to Full Council to call for the speed limit to be reduced to 20mph and an audit of road safety measures.
“Cllr John Ennis (Labour, Southcote) rejected the suggestion of reducing the speed limit, saying it’s not a fast road anyway, due to the congestion.
“However, it’s clear that more needs to be done than just repainting ‘Look left’ and ‘look right’ markings.
“The Green Party would like to see a lower speed limit outside Reading College and at Cemetery Junction to make things safer, for our young people especially. We’re also calling for a review of the junctions on Kings Road, where many of the accidents happen, in conjunction with the police, to see whether anything can be done to make them safer.”
Reading Borough Council statement
A council spokesperson said: “Every single road traffic accident is of concern to the council, including the two recent incidents on the Kings Road, and our thoughts are with those affected.
“The council works closely with Thames Valley Police on all accidents which involve casualties and will regularly review findings to understand if there are any patterns or contributory factors which would suggest that engineering or layout changes could reduce future risk.
“The circumstances which lead to road traffic incidents can differ substantially however, and it would be inappropriate to comment on the individual circumstances which led to the recent Kings Road accidents until the outcome of ongoing police investigations are complete.
“Formal road safety audits are completed as a matter of course when new schemes introduce significant layout changes. The Kings Road crossings are long-established, however, and follow standard design principles. The council is in the process of reviewing all police casualty data to determine whether any reasonable layout changes could reduce the likelihood of future incidents at this location. If any changes are proposed as a result of that process, a full safety audit would be carried out and reported to the traffic management sub-committee.”
