RESIDENTS who have called for speed humps near a York primary school to be scrapped will find out if they have succeeded next week.

City of York Council has been asked to decide whether the traffic-calming measures outside Haxby Road Primary School should be removed after people living in the area branded them “ineffective” and claimed they were making nearby homes vibrate.

A petition signed by 37 people, which has been handed in to the authority, calls for the speed humps to be replaced by a new pedestrian crossing on the stretch of Haxby Road, which includes the school’s safety zone and is covered by a 20mph speed limit.

The issue will be discussed at a decision session for the council’s cabinet member for city strategy, Coun Dave Merrett, next Tuesday, but officers have recommended the speed humps and junction tables in the area should be retained.

Council engineer Louise Robinson, said in a report which will go before the meeting: “The petition received shows a level of local concern about the existing scheme, but the suggestion of replacing the traffic-calming measures with a signalised pedestrian crossing would have significant drawbacks.

“Most significantly, the alternative proposals would have a negative impact on road safety, mainly because vehicle speeds are likely to increase. The introduction of a crossing facility would be detrimental to residents in terms of loss of parking and increased noise of vehicles stopping and starting.

“The area already has an established and well-used crossing facility serving pedestrians with minimal delays for drivers.”

The report said a speed survey on the stretch of road had shown “a good level of compliance” with the 20mph limit, but the average speed could rise by about 3mph if the current traffic-calming measures were removed. The cost of removing them has been estimated at £23,000.

Three possible sites for a pedestrian crossing have been identified – north and south of Greenfields junction and between the junctions of Greenfields and Vyner Street – but officers said funding for it would have to be found from other schemes.

However, they accepted junction tables, which are large flat-topped humps, can lead to “slight increases” in noise and vibration.