Hi! I'm Lucy. I go to Lantern Lane Primary School in East Leake and I want to get to school safely.

The schools in East Leake serve pupils from many of the local communities. Many pupils attending East Leake Academy, Lantern Lane, Brookside and Millside travel from Gotham, Clifton and beyond. Everyone travelling between East Leake and Gotham has to negotiate the Gotham Hill Top.

This is a difficult stretch of road for cyclists. The combination of a steep hill, a blind bend and crest mean that traffic in both directions are forced to slow down and follow cyclists because they're unable to overtake. Additionally, this is a busy stretch of road; cyclists have to negotiate lorries (serving several local depots), buses to and from Loughborough (this road forms part of the Number 1 bus route) and other motorists. This frequently results in incidents where impatient motorists attempt unsafe overtaking manouvres.
 
Many of us have personal experience of accidents or near-misses on this stretch of road. Every day brings the risk of another incident. A safer route for cyclists to travel between the villages would benefit everyone.

• Economically: Cycling is a cheaper and more convenient alternative to public transport
• Environmentally: Cycling is less polluting.
• Physically: Cycling brings benefits to health and wellbeing.