MONK Bretton residents are calling for the council to take control of a ‘dangerous road’ by implementing speed calming measures - after a dog was killed in an accident last Friday.
Last week, Roy Hobson was walking his dog, two-year-old border collie Hollie, on the Rotherham Road park in the area.
Hollie, a well-trained dog, bolted away from him before jumping the fencing and colliding with a car travelling along the 40mph road.
After a long and anxious wait to find her, Hollie was found dead in a nearby garden hours later.
Roy’s daughter, Sian Borowiak - whose home he was staying at whilst in the area - said the ordeal was heartbreaking.
She told the Chronicle: “My dad bought Hollie in lockdown so she’d have only been around two-and-a-half years old.
“My dad stays with me whilst he’s in the area as he has a holiday home in Hornsea where he stays the majority of the time.
“On Friday, he was walking Hollie on Rotherham Road’s park - she bolted off at the top of the gate and was hit by a car who didn’t stop to help.
“She has since been in touch with the police and we think she’s just as devastated as us.
“She was located three-and-a-half hours later in someone’s garden and she had died.”
Sian and her neighbours are now calling on the council to do introducing speed calming measures to prevent something like this from happening again.
“A friend of ours saw their dog clipped by a car here,” she said.
“This could have been a child.
“It’s a 40mph road but there's a couple of schools and the children use the park to cross back to their homes.
“It’s a terrible road - I just don’t get how it can be so built up and still be a 40mph road?
“There’s football matches on there and always plenty of kids.
“As a mum, the thought of my son crossing that road independently is terrifying.”
With the support of the public, Sian is now hoping the council will either reduce the speed limit or build a speed camera to deter motorists from surpassing the limit.
“We’re keen to get some support for this,” she said.
“My dad told me that if we have to lose our dog over this then we need to at least get something done about the road in her memory.
“I think that we’d be better off with a speed camera and in my opinion it is a dangerous road - but even if we can get a bigger wall or fence at the side then it would do the world of good.”
Barnsley Council bosses have said that no work will be done on the road as the data does not meet the ‘criteria’.
Coun James Higginbottom, cabinet spokesperson for environment and highways, said: “We're deeply saddened to hear about the recent incident on Rotherham Road near Monk Bretton Park.
“We'd like to reassure everyone that the safety of our residents, including animals, using our roads is a priority to us.
“We’ll always investigate any road safety concerns raised by residents and work with partners to make our roads safer.
"Our annual reviews, conducted by our traffic team, assess personal injury collisions to allocate resources effectively.
“The data for the specified road section indicates one injury collision over the last three years, which falls short of the criteria for further action at this time.
"We're committed to investing in making our roads safer and reducing the number of collisions while addressing those most in need of intervention in the borough first."
