A COUNCILLOR has criticised the 'dangerous' layout of a new junction, saying he fears a lorry could hit a pedestrian.
Tony Miller, Worcestershire county councillor and Fernhill Heath resident, says large vehicles have to mount the pavement to get round the Hurst Lane and A38 junction, near The White Hart pub.
He has blamed the design of the junction, which has a traffic island and, he says, is “too tight” for large vehicles to navigate.
But Taylor Wimpey, which installed the junction – where the traffic lights have still not been activated – said it meets standards, although the developer said it was working with the county council to make amendments.
Cllr Miller said: “The work was part of the Danes Green development to ease traffic flow from the 120 houses. When it was first completed I sat and watched the traffic. The lorries can not turn without part of the trailer or cab overrunning onto the footpath. So if you have got anybody on the footpath, a mum with a pram for instance, they could be hit by a lorry.
“The work has taken 36 months. The scheme was approved by the county council, and at this point of completion it is usually assessed to see if it's adoptable (for the authority to take it on and maintain).
“It doesn’t meet the minimum county council requirements. You have got articulated lorries there, early in the morning, that to turn into Hurst Lane have to go completely on the wrong side of the road, to get in.”
Martin Pinches, who runs the haulage firm M Pinches and Sons said his drivers use this route and had found it particularly tight to turn into Hurst Lane.
“At least it is not as bad at the moment though, with less traffic on the roads,” he added.
Readers also spoke out about the work. Johnny Short simply said: “Should’ve put a mini roundabout there.”
Jean Wilson added: “I’m wondering why money is spent on lights that have never been activated.”
A Taylor Wimpey spokesman said: “We apologise to local residents for the inconvenience caused by ongoing works to install a new traffic signal system on the A449.
“While these works have been temporarily delayed, we are working with Worcestershire County Council to make some amendments to the design of the junction.
“Before starting, we received all of the necessary approvals from the council and all works undertaken to date have been in accordance with current highway standards.
“We would like to thank the community for their co-operation while the works continue.”
A Worcestershire County Council spokesman said: “We can confirm that works on the junction have temporarily ceased to allow other works on the highway to progress.
“We are continuing to liaise with the developer, Taylor Wimpey, to improve the design of the scheme and to schedule its completion.”
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