Public Meeting - report

The public meeting with Cllr Tom Thacker from HCC went off very well - around 20 people attended, which for a wet, cold December night a week out from Christmas is frankly amazing.

Local blog Liveable Whitchurch have an excellent writeup here, which given I'm knee-deep in the 'flu, is your best way to get up to date: http://liveablewhitchurch.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/tufton-junction-public-meeting.html

More follow-up actions and info once I'm over this bug / Christmas. Have a safe and happy Yule.

Regards

Mike

Things are looking up

News just in that HCC Cllr Tom Thacker has met with representatives from Whitchurch Town Council, Hampshire Highways and the Highways Agency at the intersection, and several ideas are being considered to improve the situation. These will be shared at the public meeting on the 19th.

Also the Highways Agency area manager has today confirmed that "as mentioned in my letter to Sir George Young, I will let you have a reply to your earlier Email before your meeting of 19 December"

Will Christmas may come a bit early for local road users? Let's see...

The Highways Agency: You've gotta admire their grit

One thing the Highways Agency must be admired for: when they take a stance, nothing short of dynamite will shift them. Despite repeated requests from the public and our MP they still refuse to speak to the public.

Below is the latest letter sent to Sir George Young MP, outlining the HA's view on the Tufton sliproad. I think the most telling sentence is "...the site has not been identified as a location that needs to have a reduction in speed."

I know a few people who beg to differ, but that's by the by.

What they do say in this letter is that they will provide "a full response" to issues raised, before the meeting.

Today the HA have been sent this reminder, with Sir George Young in copy:

=======================================
Dear ...

It is now nearly two weeks since I wrote with the below questions. I have received a copy of your reply to Sir George Young dated 23rd November, in which you advise him that you will not be attending the meeting but you promise Sir George that I will have "a full response before the meeting".

I trust that it is simply taking some time to collate these answers, and that the Highways Agency will be responding in full to the eight questions raised below prior to the 19th December.

Regards

Cutting corners...

A local website dedicated to sustainable transport in Whitchurch has shown strong support for this campaign, including some stunning new photos of cars and HGV's cutting the corner of the intersection:

( Photo below shamelessly lifted from http://liveablewhitchurch.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/tufton-a34-junction-dangers-in-spotlight.html )

Yesterday on a stunning late Autumn ride I took this photo of the road surface. It's a bit hard to make out, but you can see how the grit on the hatching area (laid the previous evening) has been swept clean by the tyres of vehicles cutting the corner. From the centre of the proper lane to where vehicle tyres have swept the grit away is over two meters - which give you an idea of just how far over vehicles are cutting the corner:

Time for T?

Local Andrew Reeves-Hall knocked up this idea for what this intersection could look like if re-jigged just a bit. No major earthworks needed either.

Works for me. T-junctions off slip roads are nothing new, the one at Micheldever works just fine.

More questions for the HA

Following a meeting with the Hurstbourne Priors Parish Council (fully supportive BTW) and a local couple last night, the HA has been sent this list of questions:

Dear ...

While we let our MP and your area manger contemplate the political fallout from the HA not discussion this issue in person with the community, could we please clarify some points?

1. How many people have to be killed or seriously injured before the 'business case' can be assembled?

This is not a flippant question, I am genuinely interested in the metrics the HA uses. For example, is a child's life worth more or less than an adult's? Is a UK national worth more or less than a foreign resident?

2. Are there examples elsewhere in the HA network where slip road speed limits have been lowered from the default 70MPH? If there are, what were the criteria for the lowering, and did people have to die or be injured before the lowering occurred?

3. What is the estimated cost to the taxpayer of improving signage and possibly installing frangible reflective plastic 'road pickets' to clearly delineate the one-way / two-way boundary?

4. What is the estimated cost to the taxpayer of reviewing and lowering the speed limit?

Given a number of residents (out of the very small sample contacted so far) have witnessed both cars and HGV's driving up the slip road, then having to reverse back down, can you please advise:

5. How often does the HA expect wrong-way traffic on any given slip road?

6. Is occasional wrong-way traffic on a slip road an acceptable trade-off for lack of spending on more signage?

7. Does the HA have a metric for 'acceptable number of wrong-way incidents per thousand/million car movements' or similar? Basically I want to gauge the HA's appetite to tolerate this sort of occurrence as a fact of life.

8. Finally, given the design of the road means cars almost inevitably travel too fast to stop safely within the DfT's own guideline Sight Stopping Distances, what advice does the HA have for road users to ensure their safety when turning across or exiting this intersection?

Regards

Highways Agency: no-one's died yet.

This just in:

=================

Dear Mr Stead

 

Thank you for your Email below but I will not be attending the meeting as I am not in position to negotiate and agree changes to the strategic road network, at a meeting, as you are proposing. The Highways Agency has well established processes in place to identify and promote solutions to issues on its network.

 

I note that you are looking to the HA to reduce speed limit on the off-slip road but, as you have already been advised, this is not an option. To take forward alteration to the network requires a robust business case but, our review of speed limits, has not identified this slip road as a location where a reduction in speed limit is required. Consequently, we are unable to develop a business case for the change in speed limit, or bid for funds for related works such as new signage, etc. 

 

Nevertheless, we do not wish to discourage ideas on dealing with the issues on the network and would be happy to receives any other thoughts you may have. These can then be considered on their merit, with advice from our specialist advisors.

 

...Asset ManagerHighways Agency

==================

My subsequent response to the relevant HA manager, the HA area Manager and our MP (who had asked the HA to attend):

Dear ..., Ms Koenig, Sir George

I read with dismay in the below text that the HA is refusing to come and hear the concerns from locals regarding the aforementioned A34 slip road.

We were after no 'negotiation' or 'agreement' - we were simply asking for an HA representative to be present, to listen, to understand and to be an expert voice when locals or Hampshire County Council suggested solutions or ask questions. The big challenge here is that this intersection falls on the boundary between the HA and HCC.

This non-appearance and the text below - "our review of speed limits, has not identified this slip road as a location where a reduction in speed limit is required. Consequently, we are unable to develop a business case for the change in speed limit, or bid for funds for related works such as new signage, etc" - re-enforces our firmly held belief that someone - a spouse, child, partner - has to die at this clearly dangerous intersection before the HA will commit funds to any sort of review.

This rationale leaves me cold. Again I ask the HA to reconsider attendance at the meeting, seeing as we have now clarified that we expect nothing more than to be heard, and the outcome not pre-judged.