Part of Jesmond Dene Road will be closed to motor vehicles as an experimental move to avoid potential legal action – and subsequent costs – if accidents occur.

Newcastle City Council expressed concerns for the safety of the road after Kent County Council paid out £1m in damages after a vehicle left a road, resulting in serious injury.

“We are proposing to close Jesmond Dene Road to motor vehicles between Glastonbury Grove and Jesmond Dene House,” said a Newcastle City Council spokesperson. That part of the road will be pedestrianised allowing two-way cycling, and pedestrians will be able to use the full width of the road.

Original plans to make the road a one-way system for motorists – first tabled a year ago – were scrapped, following objections made during an informal consultation. The plan would have seen a safety barrier installed along the side of the road, a move which was opposed by residents concerned about the visual impact, and the potential for more accidents due to speeding and ‘rat-running’.

Carlton Reid, a regular driver and cyclist along Jesmond Dene Road, and author of a book entitled ‘Roads Were Not Built For Cars’, helped campaign against the one-way system and plan to install crash barriers along the road.

He told JesmondLocal that this “would send out the message to motorists that this is a road for speeding along”. He raised concerns for pedestrians, noting that “the footpaths are already narrow so if motorists went faster on this road it would become a no-go area for pedestrians”.

The City Council reassured residents that “the revised proposal will minimise the visual impact of the scheme and will make better provision for pedestrians and cyclists”.

There will be physical restrictions to prevent access along the full length of the road. Funding for this has been secured by the Council using its Local Transport Plan, Road Safety and Improving Transport Asset budgets.

The legal order and physical restrictions are anticipated to be implemented during December 2015, and could last up to 18 months under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order.

Further consultation is due to take place on whether Reid Park Road and Glastonbury Grove should also be closed to prevent rat-run traffic.