A pensioner has splashed out thousands making his road “the shortest in the country with speedbumps” in a bid to stop cars speeding outside his home.
Adrian Kent said he was forced to try and tackle reckless drivers pelting down his road after his grandchildren became too scared to play outside. Neighbors were also said to have been repeatedly hit by stones flicked up by fast-moving vehicles and a car window was allegedly smashed in.
Huge trucks have even been spotted hurtling along the narrow private street in Whitstable, in England’s southeast, in the U.K. So along with a neighbor, Kent paid £8,000 for new speedbumps to be put along the just over 100-yard stretch of road.
The 65-year-old split the bill with another resident for tarmac and speedbumps to be laid on the previously dirt road, which homeowners are responsible for maintaining, rather than the local authority. But the DIY ramps failed to stop motorists from hurtling through the 5 miles per hour zone at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour.
Residents have been joking about the seemingly excessive measure, with one on Facebook posting: “Is the shortest road in the country with speed bumps?”
Another laughed: “Must have a councilor living in the street.”
Despite the cost of the deterrents racking up to £8,000, Kent thought the way people responded was amusing. He said: “It’s quite funny when you think about it. Maybe I could enter the Guinness Book of Records.”
Despite the laughs, another resident sincerely jumped to Kent’s defense and praised him for taking action. She said: “We live close-by and have witnessed, prior to these changes to the road layout, two or three occasions where delivery drivers have nearly hit the children from Swalecliffe Primary School as they walk home.
“The road was often used as a cut-through and was becoming more dangerous by the day. I can only thank the homeowners for making this safer for the children and other pedestrians at their own expense.”
When elder Kent moved to the area four years ago he thought bikers would respect the road is unofficial and drive according to its conditions, but he said he was proven wrong. He added: “People were happy to tear down it at 30 to 40 miles per hour.
“A neighbor’s car window was smashed by stones flicking up and some of the stones are quite big. We’ve even had a car transporter through here. We moved here in 2018 and by 2019 we thought we would try to do something about it.
“I thought if we were to repair it we would do a permanent surface so we decided to put the bumps down. We spoke with the neighbors and they agreed but they weren’t interested in paying.”
But after installing the tarmac and the speedbumps, Kent admitted it was a waste of time and money. The final straw came when a cement mixer hit one of the bumps and spilled its load all over the street, leaving Kent with a two-hour cleaning operation.
Since this setback, he blocked off part of the road with planters, and for the past 18 months Kent County Council Highways, the fire department and police have raised no objections. The planters have been a success, he said: “It’s lovely and quiet now, but the amount of traffic coming down here was quite something before.
“I had the feeling people liked driving on the dirt road–especially the young guys. It has given us long-term stability over the road surface and it is safer.”
Produced in association with SWNS.
