Plea to improve women's safety by lighting up Hartlepool railway bridge

Councillors Angela Falconer and Gordon Cranney take a light reading from under the Seaton Carew railway bridge. Picture by Frank Reid

Cllr Gordon Cranney, who represents the Seaton ward on Hartlepool Borough Council, has been working with fellow Conservative Cllr Angela Falconer to lobby to have lights installed under the railway bridge in Station Lane.

Council chiefs have said they have received a request to increase lighting levels at the site and will be carrying out a review in the location.

The call comes just over a month after police launched an investigation when a young female complained that she was followed and “verbally harassed” by a man in Station Lane.

Cllr Cranney has now said: “With the Sarah Everard murder still being fresh in the mind, we believe it is vitally important that women feel safe walking under the bridge.

“As we are all aware, women and girls are at present very nervous due to the current circumstances and this thoroughfare being poorly illuminated only serves to exacerbate the situation.”

He added that he recently went out to measure the light under the bridge with a lux meter, and recorded readings as low as 0.07.

Cllr Cranney said he and Fens and Greatham ward representative Cllr Falconer, who were both elected in May this year, have received support from residents for the improved lighting after sharing the issue on social media.

He said: “You capture conversations as well off other people, it’s just something we’d got wind of that people weren’t happy crossing, and you can understand why with it being so dark.

“The response has been quite huge to be honest, the amount of people saying they don’t like crossing and they don’t like to send the kids out for the school bus in the darker days and nights.

“They want it, a lot of people want it.”

Kieran Bostock, the council’s assistant director for place management, said they will be looking into the matter.

He said: “We have received a request from the ward councillor to increase the lighting levels at this location.

“As a local authority we do not have a statutory duty to provide street lighting.

"However, given the concerns expressed the council’s street lighting team has been asked to look into this matter and review the existing lighting levels in this location.”