Design changes to a width restriction on Woodmere Avenue will not stop crashes, warned a man who lives on the road.

The comments come after Hertfordshire County Council agreed to short term plans to alter the width restrictions.

Some residents on the road have campaigned for years to have the width restriction altered after numerous cars have been damaged by hitting the bollards.

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Tim Vigor, whose doorbell footage captured many of the incidents, said: “I am glad they are doing something.

“It’s an acknowledgment that there is a problem.

“But I am not sure that it will stop everything.

“There were crashes before this system.

“The changes will slow everything down a bit, but there will be more crashes.”

Temporary measures include upgrading the kerbs and moving the black bollards further back from the kerb.

In the long-term the council will hold consultations to replace the physical width restriction with a camera-enforced weight restriction.

Watford Observer: The bollards will be set six inches back from the kerbThe bollards will be set six inches back from the kerb (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Vigor said: “I know the width restriction is to stop HGVs driving down the road.

“They were using the road to cut through to the industrial estate, but they are still using the middle lane that is for buses.  

“I’m an HGV driver, and they shouldn’t be using this road, it’s a residential area.

“You need a deterrent to stop them coming down and the signage isn’t great.

“Long-term we do need an ANPR camera down the road.

“If we have the camera, we won’t need a gap for buses, and we can go back to having two lanes for traffic.”

The notorious width restriction has divided opinions over the years.

Some have said the crashes are due to poor driving and others have laid the blame firmly with the design.

However, Mr Vigor explained that even people who have lived on the road for years have hit the bollards.

He said: “The last crash involved a woman who lives up the road.

“She was so upset; she has driven through it so many times without a problem.”

Work on changing the width restriction will be carried out between August 15 and 30 and Woodmere Avenue will be closed.

The work is coinciding with planned resurfacing work for the street.

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