Dear Mr Allen Richard Stanley Lee Hallett Deceased Thank you for your letter of 7 June. I have carefully considered the points you have raised and can reply as follows.
l.i. “There are no road markings in the Poundbury estate to indicate which vehicle has the right of way when reaching a junction. In addition, parking appears to be permitted along the length of Lower Blakemere Road, which forces vehicles travelling in a northerly direction into the incoming carriageway. Police evidence indicated that this reduced the sightline of the driver of the Iveco van when looking into Harewood Road to look for oncoming traffic.” The extent of road markings and general signage is purposely restricted as part of the highway design, with approval from Dorset Council Highways Department. The approach being to;
a. Place more immediate responsibility on road users rather than reliance on markings and signage
b. Establish individual engagement, including eye contact, between highway users, be they vehicular, motorcycle, cycle or pedestrian
2.i “The lack of parking restrictions on Lower Blakemere Road result in the drivers that use that road having a reduced sightlines when approaching junctions. Such drivers are not able to see traffic when approaching the junctions until very late, and as no vehicle would appear to have right of way, the risk of collision would appear to be increased.” There is no formal parking restriction in Lower Blakemere Road, in common with the majority of Poundbury. This does not alter the requirement on individuals to park safely and in accordance with the Highway Code.

With the exception of the tragic incident on 14 September 2018, Dorset Council Highways have confirmed there have been no other serious occurrences at this site. I am also assured by Dorset Council and our own Highway Design Consultants, having themselves reviewed the accident data for 2014-2018 for Poundbury and Dorchester, that there does not appear to be any pattern or clustering of accidents within Poundbury which would suggest that there are not any particular ‘black spots’. However, to reduce the possibility of a repetition, I can advise that we have reviewed the location and identified measures to restrict parking in the immediate vicinity of the junction. This is proposed to be in the form of two additional parking bollards on each approach, set back from the junction, deterring cars from parking immediately by the crossing. The proposals have been submitted to Dorset Council Highways Department for approval. Subject to such approval, they will be installed as soon as practicably possible, with a longstop of 31 October 2019. 1 trust you will contact me if you require any further clarification.