COUNCIL bosses are being asked to refuse a request for a zebra crossing to allow children to safely cross the road near a Blackburn primary school.

A petition containing 50 signatures was lodged to Blackburn with Darwen Council by parents of pupils at St James' Primary School in Earl Street.

And a supporting letter was sent by school headteacher Philip Morgan.

But council officers say a lack of funding and corroborating evidence from police means the scheme should not go ahead.

In a report to the council's planning and highways committee, highways officer Gina Lambert said: "The petition alleges that parents and children are having difficulty crossing Earl Street due to the number of parked vehicles on both sides of the road near the junction of Oozebooth Terrace.

"It is also alleged that there have been a few near misses where people have nearly been hit by vehicles.

" Despite the issues alleged in the petition there are no corroborating reports.

"A police check for the last 12 months showed 12 recorded vehicle versus vehicle and street furniture collisions.

"There have been no recorded pedestrian collisions.

"There are existing waiting restrictions on Earl Street outside the school in the form of school keep clear markings along with double yellow lines.

"There are also road narrowing points with priority give ways which effectively slow traffic down.

"In terms of road safety, the Council, as with council’s nationally, prioritises road safety funding based upon collision data held by the police, with priority being given to locations where there are incidents recorded that have led to a serious or fatal

outcome.

""Whilst we appreciate this isn’t the ideal approach to road safety interventions, it has become necessary to adopt this approach across local authorities nationally, within the context of limited funding being made available.

"It is recommended therefore that the request for a zebra crossing facility be rejected."