Rat run drivers have ploughed through walls in housing estate

Residents want DRD Roads Service to take immediate action to address the problems being created by drivers using Hampstead Park for a short cut, said SDLP councillor Colum Eastwood.

He said: "The residents of Hampstead Park have been waiting for years for a solution to this problem. Roads Service have promised traffic calming measures in the street for a long time. It is now time for action.

"Every day hundreds of drivers are using Hampstead as a shortcut. Studies have shown that the average speed of people using the park is 36 miles per hour.”

The councillor said the situation was potentially very dangerous. He said a number of walls have already been knocked down by drivers in the estate.

“It is only a matter of time before someone is seriously injured,” he commented. "I call on Roads Service to enter into a process of consultation with residents immediately about providing traffic calming measures that are suitable for the street."