AN online petition is calling for a roundabout in Bude to be made ‘safe again’ — but Cornwall Council said there is no funding available for changes at present.

The Change.org petition — titled ‘Make our roundabout safe again’ — was set up recently by Jake Prior, and has been signed by nearly 200 people.

The Post reported last summer that Mr Prior and Michelle Jones, owners of the Shack restaurant on the Strand, started a paper petition, which garnered hundreds of signatures, outlining their concerns about the island crossing near the Bencoolen Road roundabout.

Mr Prior said changes made to accommodate the replacement of a bridge meant the middle islands now ‘have no space or lower curb for any kind of person/pram/wheel chair to stop and wait for a safe passage’, and ‘kerbs have not been moved to accommodate the position of the new islands’.

He told the Post: “I see so many people dart across.

“I did see a kid, about nine, I just saw him go for it. He darted across and nearly got hit. I want them to fix the islands so there is a drop in each one.

“People floor it on that roundabout. I can see people risking their life to come to me [the Shack].”

North Cornwall’s Conservative MP Scott Mann said last June the crossing should be looked at ‘as a matter of urgency’, at the time adding he had met up with with local people who showed him the roundabout, stating: “It is apparent that the central reservations do not line up with the drop kerbs on either side of the road.”

Mr Mann told the Post last week: “I met with local people on site last year and urged Cornwall Council to finish the work to make it safer for local people.

“The people of Bude have a good case for it to be made safer and I hope the council heeds their calls.”

The mayor of Bude, Lea Deely, said while she cannot recall the roundabout petition being discussed at Bude-Stratton Town Council, she herself has signed it.

A Cornwall Council spokesperson said: “We are aware of the request to review the crossing points at Bencoolen Roundabout, however there is no funding available at present.

“It will remain on list of requested highway improvements for the town so that it can be assessed against the other schemes on the list if funding becomes available.”

The online petition can be viewed and signed at www.change.org/p/cornwall-council-make-our-roundabout-safe