Speed bumps installed in Bradley Stoke have not been installed in the rest of the county for “a number of years”.

South Gloucestershire Council says it abandoned the type of speed cushions used in the town and now installs “raised tables”.

It means Bradley Stoke is stuck with an outdated form of traffic calming with no prospect of them being improved to the standard used elsewhere in South Gloucestershire.

The council issued a statement following our exclusive story about how they traffic calming measures were causing damage to car suspensions.

Two residents – including Conservative councillor John Ashe – spoke to use about the problem, and after our story several more reported the same issue.

The authority’s response came after our story aired on BBC Radio Bristol on Wednesday.

“The council has not installed this form of speed cushion in the district for a number of years,” they said. “Now the council installs raised tables where appropriate as part of traffic calming measures.

“Studies have shown that accidents have continued to fall since the council began installing raised tables.

“The speed cushions that have been used in South Gloucestershire have been designed according to national guidelines and the council advises that motorists negotiate them at sensible speeds.”

Meanwhile, a straw poll on this website has shown a strong desire from the residents of Bradley Stoke for the speed cushions to be removed.

Eighty five per cent of those who took part called for action to be taken over the traffic calming measures.

Among those who want to see them removed is Liberal Democrat councillor Jon Williams who told us he would be “glad to see the back of them”.

Cllr Williams said he had a similar problem with his suspension several years ago. “I blamed the ramps too,” he said.

“When I was in France a couple of years ago the most effective traffic calming measure were the chicanes which were narrow and at the entrance to each town/village. They were on both sides of the road so it was not like Braydon Avenue.”

(Correction: We added the word ‘not’ to Jon William’s quote about Braydon Avenue. Error was due to a typo, sorry to Jon for that.)

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Bradley Stoke is to be one of five South Gloucestershire areas which will get a new council-funded Police Community Support Officer.

The town will benefit from £150,000 extra funding along with Filton, Kingswood, Yate and Hanham.

The officers will are specifically a response to “concerns about community safety, anti-social behaviour and other forms of crime”.

A joint statement from the Conservative councillors for Bradley Stoke, John Ashe, Brian Hopkinson, Rob Jones and Sarah Pomfret, said:

“Through the local Safer and Stronger group, residents have helped the police and local partners to specifically identify anti-social behaviour problems around Saxon Way and in the area surrounding the entrance to the Willow Brook Centre from Manor Farm Crescent.

“Residents are understandably concerned about these and other instances of anti-social behaviour in the town and so a greater police profile locally will help to reassure our residents that we are determined to act on their concerns.”

A consultation evening over a £55,000 Beacon Park scheme at Jubilee Green in Bradley Stoke is to take place on Wednesday.

South Gloucestershire Council and Bradley Stoke Town Council will host the evening to exhibit the current plans and listen to feedback.

A draft outline of what could feature in the new park was unveiled at a Safer, Stronger South Gloucestershire meeting in September 2008.

The consultation leaflet says: “We want adults and children to get involved with designing and building parts of the playground, and helping to plant trees and bulbs to make the whole space a lovely park.”

The evening runs from 7.30pm until 9pm. Further information can be found here.

A new youth centre could be built at Bradley Stoke Community School thanks to a partnership between South Gloucestershire Council and the Southern Brooks Community Partnership.

The two organisations are seeking views from young people living in the town and want to know what facilities any new building should have and what it could look like.

They are also looking for people in the town who have architectural skills, business planning skills and accountancy skills who would like to help out with the project.

Youths who are interested in shaping the project should get in touch with Youth Development Manager Ruth Cornish on 01454 868571 or via ruthcornish@sbcommunitypartnership.org.uk

Adults who are interested in helping out with the project should get in touch with Southern Brooks Partnership Director Julie Snelling on 01454 868570.

Note: We made a correction on this article about where the funding would come from – thanks to Councillor Jon Williams for pointing out the mistake.

A meeting to discuss proposals to increase housing in South Gloucestershire by 33,000 will be held next Tuesday.

The Southern Brooks Area Forum, which covers Bradley Stoke and neighbouring district wards, will be held at the Greenfield Centre in Winterbourne on 2 September.

The meeting is billed as “giving local people the opportunity to quiz council members and officers about issues and concerns that affect their area”.

South Gloucestershire Council has already reacted angrily after the new housing allocation in the area went up from 21,500 to 32,800 following a review.

Baroness Andrews’ proposed modifications to the South West Regional Spatial Strategy would place an “intolerable strain” on the county’s infrastructure according to the council.

The meeting gets under way at 7pm with doors open from 6.15pm.

The government has been criticised by South Gloucestershire Council over a proposed increase in housing in the district.

Baroness Andrews published her planned modifications to the South West Regional Spatial Strategy which could see new housing in the region increase from 106,350 to 117,350.

In South Gloucestershire this would mean a rise from 21,500 new homes to 32,800 – including 17,500 new homes in the Bristol urban area of the district.

An addtional 10,000 homes would need to be built on the edge of the existing urban areas such as land alongside the M32 and to the east of the ring road.

The council has stated that it does not support this level of growth and will make “strong representations” about the issue.

Cllr Brian Allinson, Executive Member for Planning, Transport and Strategic Environment, says the new housing would place “an intolerable strain on our already overstretched infrastructure, particularly our heavily congested transport system”.

“Our ambition is to achieve high quality sustainable new development. However, if Ministers go ahead with these modifications, this will pose us a major challenge and we will come under intolerable pressure just to deliver the housing numbers”

Changes to collection charges for bulky items are to begin from July 1, South Gloucestershire Council says.

The authority is to begin charging £15 per collection of up to three large items to “bring it into line” with other councils in the area.

Currently people living in Bradley Stoke can take advantage of one free collection a year before the £15 fee kicks in.

Heather Goddard, executive member for communities, said: “Introducing this will bring us in line with other neighbouring councils and will also allow us to put additional funding into improving recycling and waste minimisation.”

• Related link: South Gloucestershire Council recycling information