Doctor raises concerns over lack of lighting around Noble’s Hospital site

A doctor at Noble’s Hospital has raised concerns about a lack of street lighting near to the medical facility after a member of staff was injured.

In an email sent to the Local Democracy Reporting Service the doctor, who wants to remain anonymous, says the lack of street lights has become more noticeable since the nights started getting darker.

Ballaoates Road leads to two entrances at the hospital and is used by employees and patients accessing the site.

The doctor, who moved to the Island recently, says lighting would contribute to making the area a safer environment, especially for women.

In the email she says ‘improving an individual’s sense of safety through the simple measure of improved lighting is worthwhile, particularly when the point of interest is a site frequented by hospital patients’.

Ideally, she would like the street lights to be on the stretch from Strang Stores to the second hospital entrance, which leads to the Drug and Alcohol Team’s building.

She says that adding lights on a small stretch of the road close to where the new leisure centre is, wouldn’t ‘significantly impact’ light pollution in the area.

She says if the area was better lit, it would help people using the road to see better and improve their personal safety and would also increase driving visibility, for people using it to access the Mountain Road.

She says fellow staff at the hospital agree the road is dangerous.

Braddan Commissioners say lighting there was discussed eight to 10 years ago, but no resolution was made to install street lights.

It says the board isn’t a ‘lover’ of lights and has also refused to put them on Richmond Hill.