Coventry 'malfunction junction' works begin

Work has begun on a controversial junction in Coventry.



It is expected construction of the roundabout at the A45 junction with Broad Lane will finish in December, Coventry City Council said.

Residents dubbed it "malfunction junction" in June, telling the Coventry Telegraph that a digital simulation showed several crashes.

The council said the crashes were due to a "glitch" in the model.

While work is carried out the junction will be closed from 07:30-18:00 BST each day.

A housing developer is funding the project which should ease congestion and improve safety, the council said.

... the project which should ease congestion and improve safety, the council said.

That statement really worries me. It should read "... the project which will ease congestion and improve safety, the council said."

Or perhaps the inept council that we employ really don't know?

One person taken to hospital after crash at new £1m A45 roundabout

The new £1million roundabout at the busy junction of the A45 and Broad Lane has seen its first accident this morning.

Ambulance crews were called to the new-look junction in Coventry, next to the Wing Wah restaurant, at just after 9.30am following a two-car collision.

One person was taken to University Hospital in Walsgrave, although their injuries are not believed to be serious.

The old crossroads-style junction has been replaced with a traffic light-controlled roundabout, which Coventry City Council say will reduce congestion and improve the flow of traffic.

Four months of roadworks finally came to an end earlier this week and the roundabout has only just fully opened.

Wot, no pictures of the smug ginger gnome? Maybe she couldn't find her way there because her wayfinder totems weren't working?

Drivers fear possible deaths at new A45 / Broad Lane roundabout



Motorists fear there could be deaths at Coventry’s new £1million roundabout on the busy A45.

The new-look junction where the bypass meets Broad Lane opened earlier this week after around four months of roadworks and delays.

However, it hasn’t been a smooth start for the new-look junction with two accidents already, including a crash on Wednesday morning that saw one person taken to hospital.

And Coventry City Council has blamed the incidents on driver error saying they were “caused by vehicles failing to give way”.

The old crossroads-style junction outside the Wing Wah restaurant has been replaced with a traffic light-controlled roundabout, which the city council say will reduce congestion and improve the flow of traffic.

Those using the roundabout seem to think differently however, with many already worried about how soon we could see a serious, or even fatal, accident.

One concerned motorist who contacted the Telegraph was Martin Williams, who was in an accident on the new roundabout on Tuesday night.

Mr Williams, of Daventry Road, Cheylesmore, said: “On the new island there are traffic lights that shine directly down Broad Lane. In spite of their direction, the new lights do not apply to the Broad Lane traffic.

“The new lights only apply to traffic that has already entered the traffic island.

“On Tuesday night I crossed the island from Broad Lane when the lights were green and I collided with another vehicle.

“On Wednesday morning I visited the junction and in the same circumstances there has been a more serious traffic accident that was attended by police and ambulance.

“Two accidents in less than 24 hours tells me that there is a problem. Everyone I spoke with on site complained about the new arrangement.

“My concern is not about my own accident, but for improvements to be made to the junction in order to prevent any more serious accidents in future.

“I have already tried to log my concern with Coventry City Council as I do not wish any future fatality to be on my conscience.”

A spokesman for the city council said: “Officers visited the site on Wednesday morning to monitor traffic flow and the operation of the junction.

“We are aware of a couple of incidents at the junction since the new signals have been switched on.

“The incidents appear to have been caused by vehicles failing to give way at the give way lines. This is despite Give Way signs and markings being in place on the Broad Lane approaches to the junction.

“Additional temporary Give Way signs have also been put up on Broad Lane, both at the junction itself and approximately 50 metres before the junction to give drivers advance warning that they must give way ahead.

“We will continue to monitor the operation of the junction very closely.

“Queue lengths seem to be much reduced overall at the junction when compared to the old layout.”

Coventry City Council has blamed the incidents on driver error saying they were “caused by vehicles failing to give way”.

That is not a valid reason at all CCC. It ought be a simple junction to use, and it patently is not!

Another crash at new £1m Broad Lane / A45 roundabout

There has been another crash at the much-maligned new roundabout between Broad Lane and the A45.

The latest smash means there has been three crashes in the week since Coventry City Council opened the revamped £1million junction, which was redesigned in a bid to alleviate congestion in the area.

Fire crews and police were called to the new roundabout last night at about 7pm after two cars crashed. One lane was closed in the area while firefighters moved the vehicles to a safe location.

It resulted in about an hour of disruption for motorists, but nobody was seriously injured.

The latest incident follows on from two crashes within 24 hours of the new roundabout opening last week.

It's a total c*ck up. If the council had any decency they'd admit their mistake. - Of course, they can't actually do that because those having accidents could sue them!

CCC is rapidly becoming unfit for purpose.

Road blocked after ANOTHER accident at the new A45 roundabout

Motorists faced delays this morning after another crash on the new A45 roundabout.

Police were called to the scene at around 7.25am after receiving reports of two cars colliding on the new £1m island at the junction of Broad Lane and the A45.

According to reports no one was seriously injured.

The road was closed for half an hour as debris was cleared from the junction.

A West Midlands Police spokesperson said: “We were called to a two car collision which was blocking the road.”

This marks at least the fourth incident at the island in which emergency services have had to be called.

In the first week of it’s opening in December last year, three crashes on the roundabout were reported.

There must be something wrong with this junction. It is no good blaming driver error, the junction ought be easily understood by all that use it. I fear that before much longer we will see fatalities here.