£1.3m to fund safety drive on major Stratford road
MORE than £1.3m has been set aside for road safety measures on Warwick Road, Stratford-upon-Avon.
Warwickshire County Council has received £1.32m from the Department for Transport (DoT) to improve the road safety record of a stretch of road which has – over the past few years - been the scene of several accidents including two collisions at Ingon Lane junction within the space of a week earlier this year.
The money comes from the Safer Roads Fund which was established to treat the 50 highest risk local A road sections in England with remedial road safety engineering work.
It’s hoped part of the £47.5m national investment will prevent over 750 fatal and serious injuries over the next 20 years, with £420 million benefit to society.
But there’s been a mixed reaction to the Warwick Road £1.32 million announcement.
County councillor, Tim Sinclair (Cons, Stratford North) said:
"I'm delighted to see the announcement of these major new funds. As anyone who comes into town this way knows, this is a very busy road. Since getting elected two years ago I've been lobbying for investment in improved safety here. There's obviously the issue of dangerous and illegal parking opposite the Fisherman's Car Park in the summer months, as well as the accident hot spot around the Ingon Lane junction. Residents also complain of speeding vehicles coming off the 50mph Warwick Road as they enter the 30mph residential area. I look forward to seeing the detailed plans once they are available, having the chance to input on residents' behalf."
Fellow county councillor, Kate Rolfe, (Lib Dem, Stratford South) didn’t think the money was enough to make the A439 a safer road.
“It doesn’t seem a lot of money to deal with all the issues on that road – it’s pittance,” Cllr Rolfe said.
As yet there are no details of how the cash will be spent but some measures which have already been used in associated road projects across the country include improved signage, safer pedestrian crossings, better designed junctions and introducing cross-hatch sections to space out vehicles. It’s thought safety issues at Ingon Lane junction and the entrance to Fisherman’s Car Park would be top of the fix list.
The Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance survey 2023 (ALARM) reports that local authority highway teams in England and Wales only received around two-thirds of what they needed to stop local roads from further deterioration and that more than £14 billion – £68,000 for every mile of local road – is now needed to repair the backlog of carriageway repairs.
Improving road safety and saving lives involves regular maintenance as Stratford Town Councillor, Roger Harding (LibDem, Bishopton) explains.
“From my time in accident investigation and as data analyst at Warwickshire County Council, the problem on this route (Warwick Road) is the rate at which the road surface wears out (it's HGVs that do the damage) and the bendiness of the road. It really needs a regular programme of maintenance. Even surface dressing (chip and tar, which is really cheap) we found could save 10 per cent of wet road accidents. As a general indicator, if the wet road accident rate begins to climb above 30 per cent it means your surface is wearing out. The most recent ALARM survey showed our roads are now the worst they have ever been, with a backlog of £14 billion of maintenance. That is entirely down to cuts in funding at a national level. Repairing and maintaining a road surface on a regular basis cost pennies
and prevention is far cheaper as postponement of road maintenance just costs more in the long term,” Cllr Harding said.
The issue sparked debate on social media this week. Various discussion points included, the money was a “a drop in the ocean as to what is really needed,” and “what a waste of money - wouldn't be needed if folk drove accordingly.”
Colin Stewart, chairman of Stratford Town Transport Group (STTG) said: “Any funding to improve the safety of our roads is clearly welcome and the STTG look forward to the publication of the county council plans to see how this new funding is intended to improve the safety of motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.”
