Zebra crossings have been called “too ambiguous” for children as parents detail near-misses on a busy road in Surrey.

More than a hundred people have asked for traffic lights and greater road safety measures on Camphill Road, near West Byfleet Infant and Junior Schools.

Celia Ford, who started the road safety petition, said her child had a near-miss which could have been fatal on the crossing towards the West Byfleet schools.

Speaking at a Surrey County Council (SCC) Highways, Transport and Economic Growth meeting on December 17, Ms Ford said: “I will forever have [it] etched in my memory, the moment my child was so close to such a horrific end.”

She explained how in July, on a rushed and slightly stressful morning, she was taking her two children to school. At the crossing on Camphill Road, Ms Ford said she saw “to her horror” a black van fast approaching and her son ready to bolt across the road.

She told the council she screamed loudly and “the speeding van whoosh[ed] past, inches from [her] son’s face”. She said: “I dread to think what would have happened if I had not screamed.” 

A petition signed by 127 people asked SCC to install a traffic light pedestrian crossing as the zebra crossing’s markings are faded and the beacon lights do not work. Ms Ford claimed the zebra crossing was “insufficient” for the volume of cars for drop off and pick up at a school with nearly 700 pupils. 

She said: “The only way every single child has a chance to safely cross that road is if they can press a button and the vehicle can see a red light.” 

Officers and Surrey Police visited the site on December 6 to assess the situation and a number of recommendations to make the area safer will be put towards the council. 

Duncan Knox, road safety and sustainable school travel manager, said he had “every sympathy” for Ms Ford’s experience. But Mr Knox said signal crossings are “not always the best option”, explaining a “gaggle of children and parents” can be left waiting to cross between one green man and the next, causing a build-up of a crowd. 

Instead, Mr Knox recommended the school keep the zebra crossing but enhance it with LED lighting to make the beacons brighter. He added road safety training should also be carried out in schools so pupils know how to use the crossing. 

Mr Knox reminded the council there are other sites across Surrey that do not have any crossing facilities at the moment, and where the county council is looking at prioritising funding to make it available in future years. 

The residents have also asked for the 30mph speed limit to be lowered on the road as well as signs in both directions, alerting the nearby school. The officer almost enthusiastically agreed with the petitioner’s request for a 20mph speed limit and said it will be recommended in the road safety report, hoping for it to be taken forward in future years. 

Mr Knox said officers will be talking to the local councillor, Cllr Amanda Boote, about whether they want to hand out funding from their annual allocation to reduce the speed limit.

Maintenance issues raised in the petition have now been addressed, according to Mr Knox. He explained the white lining on the approaches and on the zebra crossing have been amended and the beleaguered beacon has been fixed.