SAFETY railings either side of a Petersfield pedestrian crossing could save lives, say witnesses to the death of a woman there.

A shopkeeper who saw Yogalakshmi Sinnaiah from Sri Lanka go under a lorry, said the Dragon Street crossing can be dangerous, and railings either side of it would have saved her life, and could save others in future.

An inquest on July 7 into Ms Sinnaiah’s death on January 26, heard it looked as though the home help, who was living in Heath Road, had cut the corner to get on to the pedestrian crossing, immediately before the accident.

Clothes shop Duet overlooks the crossing and owner Rhona McTavish told East Hampshire Coroner David Horsley that on more than one occasion she had been fearful for children using the crossing.

She said: “We often have our hearts in our mouths because the schoolchildren cross there. A lot of them are on scooters and bikes and cross really quickly.

“We’re always seeing people trying to make the lights rather than wait for the next one. I think it would be safer to have railings either side.”

Her view that railings would make the crossing safer was endorsed by an expert accident investigator.

Forensic Collision Investigator Anthony Johnson said: “It’s a very popular and well used crossing, so I feel that railings would be beneficial. You get all age groups using it, especially school children.”

He was referring to pupils walking to and from Petersfield Infants School in St Peter’s Road, and students from The Petersfield School.

Mr Horsley recorded a verdict of accidental death on Ms Sinnaiah, saying the lorry driver wasn’t at fault.

But he added he was going to write to Hampshire County Council Highways Department about the lack of railings on either side of the crossing, as he understood the department had been made aware of safety concerns before.

Mr Horsley said: “There were some issues about putting up railings at this crossing but the highways department felt they weren’t required. They didn’t feel they were necessary.

“As regards to the construction of railings or barriers, I will be sending a report to the highways department of Hampshire County Council.”

Hampshire county councillor Rob Humby said: “I was very sorry to hear of this accident.

“After the accident, our officers inspected the area and found the signals were working and pedestrians were crossing correctly.

“There has been no other reported pedestrian injury accidents in the past 20 years. We will, of course, consider the coroner’s report and recommendations."