PARENTS of young children have warned that a crossing near a York primary school is dangerous and could cause a serious accident.

A group of parents whose children attend Knavesmire Primary School have warned the crossing at Bishopthorpe Road, near to the junction with Campelshon Road, is putting children's safety at risk.

Cars regularly exceed the 20 mph speed limit and and the small island in the middle of the crossing scarcely accommodates a mother with a pushchair, let alone a group of people, mum Katy Sawyer said.

This is exacerbated by cars parking on both sides of the road, obscuring the view of drivers, Mrs Sawyer said, adding that a pelican crossing is desperately needed to provide a safe crossing.

Mrs Sawyer said: "I am working with a group of concerned parents from Knavesmire primary school to improve safety at the crossing. I will be organising a petition calling for a pelican crossing and I hope everyone in the local community who is concerned about road safety will sign it.”

She is being supported by councillor Julie Gunnell who represents the Micklegate Ward, and York Central MP Rachael Maskell, who both attended a walkabout of the area with some of the parents from the school.

Ms Maskell said: "Too many children are killed or injured on our roads and we need to ensure that the places where they cross are as safe as possible.

"Bishopthorpe Road is extremely busy and too many drivers ignore speed warnings. I am concerned that the island in the middle of the road is too small to accommodate a group of people.

“I agree that more needs to be done make the crossing safe and the sensible thing is to install a pelican crossing. I am writing to the council to ask if they will consider the request."

Cllr Julie Gunnell said: “I met with some of the parents to help highlight the dangerous crossing on Bishopthorpe Rd. This is an extremely busy part of the road for both motorists, cyclists and pedestrians, including many school children. The development of the Terry’s site is also adding to an increase in traffic and pedestrians. I am hoping that council officers will now make this crossing an urgent priority as it has been nearly a year since their assessment. This is too much of a dangerous situation to allow it to continue and put young local children at risk.”