A £500,000 fund is earmarked to spend on smaller schemes that
will improve safety and meet the needs of local people. In the
West Midlands, 18 schemes were carried out over 12 months from
the Customer Led Patch Fund.
These ranged in size from fencing installation to larger projects
such as redesigning the A483 Maesbury Road junction in Oswestry,
Shropshire.
HGVs joining the A483 at the junction often mounted the footpath
due to the tight turning. As well damaging the pavement, a
bollard and signpost had also been hit. And the time taken to
navigate the junction caused congestion.
Using £130,000 from the patch fund, the junction was altered with
new road markings and kerbing laid out to make it easier for HGVs
to negotiate. Since the changes in April, there hasn’t been any
damage and traffic is moving more smoothly through the junction.
Highways England Programme Development Manager Ian Doust said:
It is important for Highways England to be a good neighbour and
listen to not only the people that use our roads but also those
living near our network.
This fund is available to act on suggestions by local people
and carry out improvements on smaller and medium-sized issues.
Over the last year we have managed to make a difference to the
lives of road users and residents across the West Midlands and
are already working on a list of improvements for the next 12
months.
Other schemes carried out during the 2020/21 year included
resolving a safety issue on the A45 Church Road junction, near
Coventry.
In summer months, the grass on the central reservation, which
follows a curving road, grew to such an extent that traffic on
the westbound A45 turning right into Church Road through the
junction in the central reservation would struggle to see
oncoming traffic.
Lanes had to be closed on the busy dual carriageway to cut the
grass. One solution would have been to lose the grass and replace
it with concrete. But instead, thanks to the patch fund, £130,000
was spent replacing the traditional grass with sedum, a plant
with a maximum growth of 15cm.
If this proves successful it will be rolled out to other similar
sites in the region which have such issues. Elsewhere, action was
taken to tackle flooding in the A49 Victoria Street underpass in
Hereford. Pumps in the underpass were failing to cope with
rainwater which could reach up to six inches deep in bad weather.
They were replaced with £10,000 from the fund.
And just £2,000 resolved a nuisance problem at a layby on the A46
at Salford Priors in Warwickshire. Gaps in the hedges in the
layby meant people could access neighbouring land. This led to
complaints of anti-social activities and human waste being left
on the land. The patch fund paid for shrubs and bushes which have
deterred and prevented people from accessing the land.
The schemes selected are often put forward by Highways England
staff following conversations with MPs, councillors and parish
councils where concerns are raised and suggestions made. They are
also in response to suggestions or complaints received through
the Customer Contact Centre.
Projects in the pipeline for this year include installing
additional safety barriers, an anti-fly-tipping project and
landscaping.
