CALLS for urgent road safety improvements in Wrecclesham have intensified again this week after a 40 tonne lorry hit the A325 railway bridge and came crashing down onto a pavement used by dozens of schoolchildren every day.

The five-axle HGV belonging to Kent-based haulage firm S&S Distribution struck the protective boom on the southern side of the bridge at around 10am last Friday and flipped onto its side - the trailer overturning onto the A325/Weydon Lane junction and the cab rolling onto the only pedestrian walkway under the bridge.

Miraculously no one was hurt, but police initially closed the southbound lane of the A325 from the Coxbridge roundabout and later both lanes of the busy A-road as the lorry was heaved back on to its wheels and recovered around two hours later.

Trains were briefly subjected to a five mph speed limit across the bridge, but after Network Rail engineers attended the scene and confirmed no damage to the bridge, the track returned to full-speed.

It is the second HGV to overturn after hitting the bridge this year and comes just weeks after the tragic death of 38-year-old mother-of-two Amy Harris dog-walking a client’s puppy in Wrecclesham Hill on September 19.

Responding, villagers have accelerated calls for safety improvements in the village - expressing growing frustration at the lack of action after nearly 60 years of campaigning for a Wrecclesham bypass.

One such resident, Carly Redwood, a friend of both Amy Harris and the owner of the dog killed in the incident, wrote to Farnham MP Jeremy Hunt this week demanding immediate action following the latest lorry strike.

In her letter, printed in full on page 15, Mrs Redwood says in order for her son to walk the 500 yards from her house in The Street to Weydon School, he must negotiate lorries “skimming his clothes” on narrow pavements, speeding cars crossing the mini-roundabout at the foot of School Hill, the “utter chaos” of the Grovebell Industrial Estate and finally lorries hitting the railway bridge and collapsing on the junction with Weydon Lane.

“I was friends with the lady who lost her life two weeks ago on this road and I am friends with the family who owned the beautiful dog,” she said.

“I have been sad, angry and every emotion in between. But, standing there today, watching a ginormous lorry fall on to the pavement where our children walk to school – well, it was just too much for me to keep my counsel any longer.

“How many more smashed lampposts and smashed hearts must we endure?

“The next fatality could be a child and not the mother of children. I ask you, Mr Hunt, could you live with that on your conscience?”

It comes after Mr Hunt, MP for South West Surrey, met with local residents at the scene of Mrs Harris’s fatal accident a few days after it happened and pledged to press for speed calming measures on this stretch of road.

Responding to last Friday’s incident, he confirmed Surrey County Council has requested the police undertake a traffic survey in the village, and reiterated his preference for a new speed camera on the A325 in Wrecclesham.

Mr Hunt told The Herald: “Following the tragic accident that claimed the life of Amy Harris I contacted Surrey County Council leader, David Hodge.

“Surrey Highways has since agreed to commission a speed survey from the police to check the level of speeding on this stretch of road. If excessive speeding is confirmed, then the options for speed management measures will be considered with the police and local highway engineers.

“This could include additional enforcement by the police, or a review of the vehicle activated signs but I personally still favour a camera. This further accident involving the HGV last Friday of course adds to the urgency of finding a solution soon.”

A public meeting has also been called by councillors at St Peter’s School, Little Green Lane at 10.30am on Saturday, October 21.

This will provide the foundation for the newly formed Wrecclesham Residents’ Association, which hopes to highlight concerns about the A325 and press the case for change.

Councillors Paula Dunsmore, Wyatt Ramsdale and Pat Frost were already planning the group but recent events have spurred them into holding the initial meeting.

They said in a joint statement: “Only a few days after the public meeting was announced, the railway bridge on the A325 suffered yet another strike, with a lorry overturning and blocking the road.

“Fortunately no one was injured, but as a busy pedestrian route to local schools this could have had a very different outcome. It just goes to show how urgently action needs to be taken to address the issues of traffic in Wrecclesham.”