Highways officers have been accused of putting lives at risk after they removed a mirror that helped people edge out of a pub’s car park.

Landlord Simon Kidd attached the £40 looking glass to a lamppost over the road from his boozer, the Royal Oak, in Upstreet near Canterbury.

The publican purchased the equipment on eBay after witnessing several near-misses as customers struggled to see past a line of parked cars and into Island Road.

But just four weeks after installing the mirror, the 48-year-old spotted Kent County Council (KCC) officials removing it from its perch.

“I went over there and said, ‘What are you doing? You could cause a head-on collision now you’ve done that’,” Mr Kidd recalled.

“They took something down that could save lives. I was just trying to stop people from having an accident. It’s ridiculous.

“Apparently, you have to ask before (putting up a mirror) – it’s bureaucracy gone mad.

“If it’s stopping someone from being killed, then what’s the problem?”

Mr Kidd says the line of cars parked along the pavement makes it particularly difficult for motorists to turn onto the route towards Thanet.

To make matters worse, he claims vehicles travelling along that section of Island Road regularly exceed the 30mph limit, sometimes reaching speeds of as much as 60mph.

Since he took on the village alehouse last November, he estimates that he has seen about 15 head-on collisions almost occur.

“Going towards Thanet is very, very dangerous. It’s so dodgy,” Mr Kidd added.

“What we tend to do is not bother turning right. It’s a matter of time before someone gets hurt.”

Mr Kidd believes the risks at the exit would be substantially reduced if KCC placed a policy-compliant mirror in the same position.

A spokesman for the authority said: “We limit the use of traffic mirrors on our roads to specific locations where there is evidence to show they would reduce road casualties.

“In this case, no approval had been sought for this mirror and officers had concerns, which included it was positioned too low on the post and could cause a hazard to pedestrians.

“The safety of our roads is a priority for KCC, and officers will continue to work with residents and businesses in the area to investigate and address concerns where they are raised with us.”

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