HOW long does it take to cross the road if you are elderly, injured or unable to walk fast?

That was the question posed by Headington residents who are concerned a new toucan crossing in London Road, near the Latimer Road junction, is a danger to those who are not so fast on their feet.

The crossing was changed from a pelican crossing – where the green lights flash before the lights for vehicles change – to a toucan crossing, which are designed for both pedestrians and cyclists, during major alteration to London Road.

There are 36 toucan crossings across the city.

After an elderly woman had a near miss with a bus on the busy junction, concerned residents invited an Oxfordshire County Council highways engineer to visit so they could show him why the new system was causing confusion.

Oxford city councillor Ruth Wilkinson said: “We managed to get across, but what’s confusing everyone is the county council has turned it from a pelican crossing into a toucan crossing.

“What that means is when you get halfway across, the green man goes out and you’re left in the middle of the road with no sounds and no lights to indicate it’s safe to cross – even though the red light is still in place for traffic.”

She said timings showed the green light showed for seven seconds and then there were a further 16 seconds to cross, something which wasn’t clear to pedestrians.

Len Samways, 85, who lives in Latimer Grange off Latimer Road, said: “It’s a bit hit and miss as to whether you can get across.

“A lot of people aren’t happy because the green light has gone out long before they get to the other side.

“I think this crossing is potentially dangerous.”

Gwynneth Pedler, 86, from Cumnor, tested the crossing on her mobility scooter.

The deputy chairman of disability group Oxfordshire Unlimited, she said: “This crossing is very confusing and it’s not the right sort of crossing for here.

“It really needs to be looked at.

“I think this is one of the least friendly crossings I have come across so far as a disability campaigner.”

She pointed out the crossing did not have revolving cones, usually installed on such crossings to tell blind and visually impaired people when it was safe to cross.

County council spokes- man Owen Morton said: “We have reassured them that although the green man might disappear before pedestrians have reached the other side, there is still plenty of time for less mobile pedestrians to finish crossing before the traffic signals change.

“Crossings in the UK operate this way to discourage pedestrians from starting to cross at the end of the phase.”