HUNDREDS of children are having to risk their lives to cross a Skipton blindspot, according to a campaigning couple.

Ted and Mildred Woodbridge see daily near-misses through their window on The Bailey, just a couple of feet away from the traffic which thunders around the tight bend opposite Skipton Castle's gate.

And they fear things can only get worse with the expansion of Skipton Building Society's headquarters further up the road.

In recent years the retired couple have had to comfort at least two knocked-down people in their living room until ambulances have arrived.

Last weekend the couple say they were shocked to see a family of four almost mowed down as they tried to cross to get to the castle.

Ted has himself been a victim of a road-rage incident during one of his daily futile attempts to safely edge out of his drive, which has little or no visibility up or down The Bailey.

At the end of his tether, Ted even managed to persuade MP David Curry to take a look at the problems.

Ted, a former gardener at Skipton Castle, said: "It's the schoolchildren I'm most worried about. One of these days one or more of the schoolchildren who cross are going to have a serious accident.

"Over 400 school parties go through the castle every year, and a lot of them can be toddlers. I have seen one teacher having to split her party into two, just so she could get them across the road with any kind of safety.

"Only last week, with this family of four, the father was visibly shaking. I feel very strongly about this and want something done about it."

And he added: "Getting out of my property with my car is almost impossible. You have to take your life in your hands and sometimes I can be sitting in my car for 20 minutes before someone lets me out.

"Once when I pulled out, a car whizzing down The Bailey came up right behind me and nudged the back of my car. The two young lads in the car gave me a load of abuse. It was a road-rage incident really."

Ted, who is retired, said he would like to see a pedestrian crossing on the dangerous bend, and more visible "slow down" signs further up the road, so drivers can pre-empt the blindspot.

But he fears a major extension to the Skipton Building Society headquarters, just yards from his home, could triple the amount of traffic plying The Bailey.

Ted decided to speak up about his concerns at Skipton's Area Forum last month, addressing North Yorkshire County Council's highways officer for Skipton, Bill Isherwood.

And Skipton MP David Curry has even taken an interest in Ted's case, going up to his listed cottage to see for himself the constant game of Russian roulette being played by motorists and pedestrians.

Bill Isherwood told the Area Forum that the corner of The Bailey was of concern to the highways department, and measures to control traffic there were currently being looked into.

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