BUSINESS people and employees on the Medway City Estate at Strood are angry about the lack of road safety measures following an accident in which a girl pedestrian was killed.

The girl, aged 17, from Chatham, died after being struck by a lorry on Wednesday. She was taken to Medway Maritime Hospital where she died later from her injuries.

Following the accident, police closed Anthonys Way, the main access road to the estate, for about three hours, while the incident was investigated.

Immediately after the incident people based on the estate said it was an accident just waiting to happen.

Many are worried by the lack of traffic management, creating dangerous conditions for pedestrians and motorists alike.

"That road is a nightmare," said Liz Yantz of the City Veterinary Centre, just off St Anthonys Way. Lorries park up on both sides making it hazardous to cross. Even if the lorries aren't there, pedestrians have to step onto the road on our side, to avoid a huge pool of muddy water. And with lorries whizzing by that's really dangerous.

"There is no traffic management at all. No double yellow lines, or pedestrian crossings or anything.

"They take enough money in rates from the businesses on this estate, but they give nothing back. It's a dirty, unkempt and dangerous place."

Kelly Lawrence, a receptionist at City Veterinary Centre, said: "You take your life in your hands if you walk along the side of the road.

"The verge up to the garage is just a muddy trench. I hate crossing the road here. The way they park lorries on both sides of the road means you can't see what's coming.

"The only post box on the estate is across the road from us and it can take half an hour to get there because of the traffic. We definitely need a crossing.

"Even in a car it's dangerous. Lots of our customers tell us how they've come face to face with a lorry."

Clive Peachey, from a neighbouring company Future Generations, was walking along the narrow muddy verge of Anthonys Way.

"They badly need a crossing here," he said. "People get off the bus on this side of the road, and just can't get across. It's very treacherous they've got to do something about it.

"What makes it worse is the lorries double parking on the road while the drivers go to the café. Also the bushes along the verge here are overgrown and tend to push you into the road."

Derek Snashall is a lorry driver working for Ridgeway's, a security and cleaning company.

"Vehicles do fly along this road pretty fast," he said. "And where the parked lorries reduce visibility, it makes it very dangerous for pedestrians to cross.

"We could definitely do with a crossing and possibly traffic lights up by MacDonalds. On this side people are forced to walk in the road because there's no footpath."

Janice Thorn from Forward Forklifts walks all the way down to the roundabout where Anthonys Way becomes Sir Thomas Longley Road before she feels safe to cross.

"At least there's a traffic island there and you can cross one section at a time," she said. "I have to get across the road to reach my bus stop."

But even that journey is fraught with hazard. It means walking along a muddy verge, with overgrown bushes in places.

"There needs to be a crossing of some kind here," she said. "The volume of traffic has increased tremendously over the last few years."

A spokesman for Medway Council said that the estate, which has 600 firms and employs 5,000 workers, was not owned by the Council and is the responsibility of a private firm, although the council does have accessibility for main access roads.

Medway Council's portfolio holder for Highways and Transport Cllr Phil Filmer, agreed that there were no crossings on Anthonys way.

"It's something our safety team will have to look into when we have more details of what happened," he added.