Warwickshire Pride group seeks rainbow crossing for Leamington

The Warwickshire Pride group is encouraging people interested in following the campaign to message the Warwickshire County Council.

A Warwickshire County Council spokesperson said: "Currently there are no proposals to install a "Rainbow Crossing" in the county.

"It is on note, that this type of crossing is not approved by the Department of Transport to be installed on the public highways."

The council said any requests for amending an existing crossing to a rainbow crossing would be site specific and would need to be forwarded to the traffic and safety inbox for consideration at the following email address: [email protected]

The pride group has encouraged people to send a message to the county council through that email with an explanation about why they want the crossing.

Daniel Browne, the chair of the Warwickshire Pride group, said "We would like a rainbow crossing because it will be a visible show of support for the LGBT+ community.

"As well as being a visible show of support for the LGBT+ community and giving the message that all people are welcome here, it would be a talking point and I'm sure people would visit the town just to see the rainbow crossing."

The group says rainbow crosswalks are a common sight in other cities and towns across the UK.

Mr Browne added: "Warwickshire Pride already brings tourism to the area and a boost to the local economy, so a rainbow crossing would also be a good investment. We're asking that a rainbow crossing is painted at a set of traffic lights rather than at a zebra crossing."

Warwickshire Pride have some preferred locations for the rainbow crossing, which include either the traffic lights outside Leamington Town Hall, the traffic lights going across from the Jephson Gardens to the Pump Rooms, or the traffic lights on Dormer Place.

The pride group would also like the rainbow crossing to be permanent, like the ones in other towns and cities are, and in time for this year's Warwickshire Pride festival on Saturday August 22.