Pensioner spends £8,000 installing speed bumps to stop dangerous drivers
25 August 2022, 16:19 | Updated: 5 October 2022, 12:03
The man decided to take things into his own hands after his grandchildren said they did not feel safe playing outside.
A pensioner from Whitstable in Kent has revealed how he spent £8,000 to install speed bumps on his road.
Adrian Kent, 65, and his neighbours had had enough of cars driving dangerously fast down their road, with some residents complaining that vehicles travel at such high speeds that stones have flicked up from the road and hit them.
Alongside his neighbour, Adrian decided to spend thousands on speed bumps, especially after his grandchildren told him they were scared to play outside.
Adrian and his neighbour spent £8,000 between them on the 100-yard stretch of road, which was previously a dirt road.
He explained that homeowners on the street in Whitstable are responsible for maintaining the road, and not the council.
Talking about his decision, Adrian said: "People were happy to tear down it at 30 to 40mph.
"A neighbour’s car window was smashed by stones flicking up and some of the stones are quite big.
"We’ve even had a car transporter through here. We moved here in 2018 and by 2019 we thought we would try to do something about it."
He went on: "I thought if we were to repair it we would do a permanent surface so we decided to put the bumps down.
"We spoke with the neighbours and they agreed but they weren’t interested in paying."
While some people have mocked Adrian's decision to install the speed bumps, neighbours have vocally thanked him for taking action.
One local resident said: "We live close-by and have witnessed, prior to these changes to the road layout, two or three occasions where delivery drivers have nearly hit the children from Swalecliffe Primary School as they walk home.
"The road was often used as a cut-through and was becoming more dangerous by the day.
"I can only thank the homeowners for making this safer for the children and other pedestrians at their own expense."
The creation of the speed bumps, however, did not go to plan after a cement mixer hit one of the bumps and spilt its load all over the street.
Following this, Adrian moved two large plant pots in the way of the road, which seems to have done the trick.
The plant pots, which you can see in the pictures taken of the road, have been in place for 18 months now and Kent County Council Highways, the fire service and police have raised no objections.
Adrian said: "It’s lovely and quiet now, but the amount of traffic coming down here was quite something before.
"I had the feeling people liked driving on the dirt road – especially the young guys.
"It has given us long-term stability over the road surface and it is safer."
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