Public Works has pledged to reinstate a safety barrier across Tribe Road No 1, Southampton, two weeks after it was taken down.

The barrier had been implicated in the death of ten-year-old Tiffanelle Pitcher-Francis on January 11. Tiffanelle was killed after cycling down the pedestrian road, when she struck the barrier’s horizontal crossbar.

The child’s family called for the barrier to be modified to prevent other youngsters from attempting to cycle beneath it — but other residents spoke up when Government removed it entirely, leaving the road open for motorcyclists to illegally shortcut down the hill.

The Railway Trail, popular with cyclists and runners, crosses the junction of the Tribe Road and Camp Hill Road, and area MP Zane DeSilva issued repeated calls this week for Government to address the problem — calling the open road “a tragedy waiting to happen”.

This afternoon, a Public Works spokesman said that the Ministry’s highway section was modifying the barrier at its workshop.

“A replacement barrier will be put in place early next week once it has been modified,” the spokesman added. “The new barrier will have the middle post that is needed to prevent anyone from being hurt and ensure the safety of the public.”

In the meantime, a temporary water barrier will be placed at the site to keep traffic off the Tribe Road. The Ministry will issue an update once the new barrier is in place.