FEARS for pedestrian safety have led to renewed calls for lighting across the top north-eastern corner of Flood Meadows. Amery Hill Residents' Association believes the time has come to reconsider Alton Town Council's policy on footpath lighting following a growing list of incidents involving anti-social behaviour on this popular and well- used area of open space. It is an ongoing saga with conservationists keen to limit urban encroachment on what remains a semi-wild area, while a number of local residents believe personal safety should take priority. Whatever the outcome, councillors insist there will be no lights without full public consultation. For Alton Town Council it is a fine line to tread. A strong conservationist lobby led to a decision in February last year not to instal lighting despite fears sparked by an indecent assault in the meadows in April 2004. Furthermore, councillors agreed "not to consider the matter again during the lifetime of the present council". But alarm bells were triggered again last October when a local resident was set upon by a gang of four to five males who jumped from the bushes, in the dark, and harassed the man and his wife as they made their way home along "The Avenue" (running from Tanhouse Lane to Netherfield Close). The incident resulted in an assault on the man who sustained cuts to the head. While a man was charged with the 2004 assault, the October victim was unable to identify his attackers and they escaped prosecution. Stunned by this "particularly violent attack", the Amery Hill Residents' Association contacted the town council with a renewed plea for footpath lighting. Having met the residents to discuss the matter, some councillors now believe there to be justification for the installation of a lighting scheme to provide an illuminated route for people walking across the meadow as the most direct link between the Greenfields Avenue estate and the town. In a report to last week's town council recreation committee, deputy town clerk Greg Burt said that the association had asked the council to consider a more modest lighting scheme than the one proposed last year. While the previous scheme had involved lighting the whole of "The Avenue", the new proposal would light the path from Steeple Drive to Netherfield Close. A much shorter route running across the top north- easterly corner of the meadow, this scheme would prove less environmentally intrusive and may only require two lighting columns to illuminate the path where it cuts through the maturing "Trees for Life" area. Mr Burt had priced up a scheme comprising four columns costing £6,568 or two columns at £3,596. He suggested that developers' contributions for public open space, ring- fenced for use on Flood Meadows, could be used to fund the project. Commenting on the proposal, Alton Town Mayor Paddy Mendham said he would support the concept of this reduced lighting scheme. This view was echoed by Robyn Fitzer, who pointed out that if people were concerned about their safety, they could use the lit path rather than crossing the meadow in the dark. Allan Chick, who lives in the area, said he walked the route on a regular basis and claimed the lack of lighting had been a bone of contention with local residents ever since the estate had been built. On the other hand, "Jimmy" Patel questioned whether lighting would make the route any safer or whether it would merely serve to attract more people to congregate in the area. Recreation committee chairman Pam Bradford said that was why it was important to open up the question of lighting to public debate. Speaking after the meeting, Amery Hill Residents' Association spokesman Luath Grant Ferguson told The Herald he believed a lit route across the top of the site would provide an ideal solution, addressing the safety issue for those who need to cross the meadow after dark, whilst generating a minimum amount of "light pollution". Citing the growing list of often unreported incidents involving "incredibly violent, uncouth and often alcohol-induced behaviour", his fear, in particular, is for the large number of shift workers and especially young women and children who cross the meadow unescorted in the dark. "While two attacks may be acceptable to some, I wonder how many it will take to reverse that acceptance," questioned Mr Grant Ferguson who believed the town council needs to take account of the fact that it has encouraged people to cross the Meadow by turning it into semi-parkland and setting out walkways, "but without any lighting whatsoever". "It is simply encouraging trouble," said the local resident who added: "I think the council needs to remember that this was Fanny Adams' field."
