Newstead resident John Dean inspects the damage caused to his house when a car crashed into it yesterday morning. Picture: SCOTT GELSTON
NEWSTEAD resident John Dean was awoken yesterday morning in unusual circumstances, after a woman crashed her car into his Olive Street home.
A woman was exiting Coles supermarket at 9am into Olive Street when she was struck by a man driving a ute.
The woman then veered off the road into Mr Dean's front yard, became airborne and crashed into the house - moving his bedroom wall 2 centimetres inwards.
"I was just in bed with my two dogs and I heard a bang and then a crunch. I came outside and the lady was crying and upset," Mr Dean said.
"It was like a tree came crashing down."
Mr Dean said speeding in Olive Street had been a problem for some time and that a petition was presented to the Launceston City Council two years ago when his neighbour's fence was damaged by an off- track vehicle.
"We're very alarmed and concerned about the speeding of vehicles in and out of Coles and along Olive Street in general, especially on a morning when they try and zip past Elphin Road," he said.
"I think people need to slow down and the council should slow down the traffic with speed humps. If someone had been walking along here or I was outside, someone could have been seriously injured."
Mr Dean collected 12 signatures out of 15 residents who live in the area around the supermarket to forward on to the council.
Council general manager Robert Dobrzynski said the council was considering a roundabout at the junction of Olive Street and Belhaven Crescent.
"However, it's important for people to drive to the conditions," he said.
