Residents Fear For Safety On Dark Merton Park Roads


Petition calls for better and brighter street lighting in the area

Dorset Road in Merton Park

Dorset Road in Merton Park

A petition has been launched calling for safer street lighting in Merton Park after reports residents feel unsafe walking home alone at night.

Councillors in the ward say the dense tree canopy in streets such as Dorset Road can obscure the range of street lights in the summer months.

The Merton Park Ward Independent Resident Councillors have also been told by Merton Council that a number of street lanterns in the area have failed and need to be replaced.

The local councillors stated in a newsletter to residents: "The tragic murder of Sarah Everard a year ago led to a fundamental re-appraisal of how safe our streets are at night, especially for women walking alone. In some roads such as Dorset Road the dense tree canopy in mid-summer obscures the range of the street lights.

"The council admits that some of the lanterns (elements) have failed and need to be replaced. It’s no wonder that residents (men as well as women) are reluctant to venture out at night when street lighting is so patchy, leaving dark, unlit pools on the pavements."

They have launched a petition calling for better and brighter street lighting in Merton Park. It also gives respondents the opportunity to name the black spots where they feel unsafe.

They added: "No one need feel unsafe when walking alone at night. Faulty lights should be fixed as a matter of priority, and trees trimmed back every year where they obscure street lights."

You can access the petition via: http://www.mertonpark.org.uk/street-lighting/.

May 23, 2022