Dear Bellevue Hill residents and business owners, please join our family in calling for Woollahra Council to add a pedestrian crossing or refuge on Bellevue Road (between Bulkara/Streatfield Rd and Kambala/Cooper Park Rd) to make it easier for school children, and all locals, to access the bus stops and shops.

Our letter to council:

“Dear Woollahra Council,

I write on behalf of my family, with support from a number of local families, seeking Council’s support for implementation of a pedestrian safety crossing on Bellevue Road near the bus stops between the intersection with Bulkara Road and Kambala Road.

As a mother of two school-aged children residing in Bellevue Hill, I am very concerned of the safety risk to children who are unsafely having to cross Bellevue Road to access their school bus stop.

This section of Bellevue Road I refer to, has a bus stop on either side, both of which are widely used by school children. Children are crossing the road twice daily to get to/from the bus stops on Bellevue Road, with no traffic light or pedestrian crossing nearby. Being a main road and peak traffic hours, there are cars speeding along Bellevue Road, making this a high-risk area to cross.

I believe this safety issue must be alleviated by adding a pedestrian crossing or refuge, either close to the Bulkara Rd / Streatfield Rd roundabout where cars are already slowing down, or anywhere along that block up to Cooper Park Rd / Kambala Rd, where the bus stops are located. The crossing would greatly help school children to safely cross and catch the bus. It will also create more safe crossing opportunities for children who walk to school. Please see the map I have marked up showing these locations.

This exact safety risk was highlighted in Council’s 2014 Traffic Management Strategy for Woollahra which recommended pedestrian refuges at eight priority-controlled intersections along Bellevue Road including Arthur Street and Kambala Road. Despite this recommendation, the only works delivered were the construction of a thin central concrete median and dividing strip along Bellevue Road approaching Bulkara Road which were approved by Council’s Local Traffic Committee on 3 November 2015. 

These works have not resolved the significant safety issues along this part of Bellevue Road. The narrow concrete strip on a precarious edge of a busy 4-way roundabout, with no space to wait safely or signage to encourage driver awareness, and therefore does not actually provide a pedestrian refuge.  

The median strip should, at a minimum, be upgraded to provide a safe pedestrian refuge similar to other pedestrian crossings elsewhere in the area with clear pedestrian signage and markings. This is particularly important given the speed at which vehicles travel down Bellevue Road and the number of children crossing near this intersection.  

As Bellevue Hill is a residential area, primarily made up of families, this is a safety risk that should be addressed by Council as a priority.

An additional benefit of this pedestrian crossing would be creating safer, easier access to the 7 shops (including a café, restaurant, bottle shop, beauty, hair, fashion and framing shop) in this same block, that would improve the patronage of these small businesses and create a safer, more enjoyable, accessible experience for all local residents.

As a parent and resident of Bulkara Road, I would feel much safer letting my school-aged kids use public transport if they could safely cross Bellevue Road and walk home from their local bus stop. Speaking to many neighbours and locals, they agree a pedestrian crossing would remove the risk for their children.

I request that Council report this matter to its Local Traffic Committee, and allocate appropriate funding to design and construct a pedestrian crossing in in its upcoming budget. It is requested that Council prioritise this matter as it represents an immediate safety risk.”

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