A POTENTIAL accident blackspot in Kendal could soon be made safer by the introduction of extended double yellow lines.

Residents living close to the junction of Webb View and busy Burneside Road have claimed cars parking around the location have made it highly dangerous for vehicles pulling out onto Burneside Road.

Concerns have been heightened by the fact that Webb View is the only access road to Wainwright Court, a complex which houses around 90 elderly people and often needs to be accessed by emergency vehicles.

"Accidents causing death or injury are waiting to happen," said Wainwright Court resident Irene Haugen, who said she had alerted various agencies to the problem.

Cllr Peter Thornton, who represents the area, said he was actively looking into the issue and had already met with residents of Wainwright Court, and he said consultations would take place early in the New Year with a view to moving the matter forward.

Cllr Thornton explained that while he has been aware of the problem for some time, there was an initial delay in addressing the matter because when Wainwright Court was completed, the access road was unadopted and the issue was therefore outside council jurisdiction.

He said it was only when the road was eventually adopted that he was able to progress matters.

The Liberal Democrat councillor has allocated £2,000 from his transport department allowance towards the cost of consultation and possible costs of lining work and said he was making every effort to tackle the problem and achieve a solution.

Currently, double yellow lines do run along Burneside Road but they come to an end as the footpath curves into Webb View, and Cllr Thornton said at this stage an extension of the yellow lines around the corner into Webb View on each side of the road appeared to be the best solution.

A Cumbria County Council spokesperson pointed out that if the matter was to be brought forward, a Traffic Regulation Order needed to be issued which would involve studies and consultation, and therefore even if it was decided to extend the yellow lines as suggested, it was difficult at this stage to put a timescale on when the project would reach completion.