One of the items discussed at last week’s local highways panel was the junction of Watery Lane ,? Hullbridge Road and Lower Road. There have been five ‘personal injury collisions’? in the past five years – one of them being serious. Three of them involved turning right into Watery Lane; all of them were in the morning rush-hour.
So County Highways engineers proposed some modest improvements which have now been agreed:
- Refresh all the roads markings as they had become worn or damaged
- Add an ‘informal domed island’ at the Give Way marking in Watery Lane to improve the visibility of the turning point of the junction and deter road users from cutting across the junction
- Reposition the black-and white chevrons signs to improve sight lines and declutter the junction
- Consider installing a short section of kerbing and reinstate the grass verge to maker the edge of the highway more obvious
- Cut back vegetation to 3 metres away from the carriageway to improve visibility and allow the chevrons sign to be repositioned
- Remove part of the hatch lining to highlight the turning point from Lower Road into Watery Lane.
Total cost of this is ?6,500 and should make the junction a bit safer. Though it’s a pity you have to have an accident analysis to get road markings repainted…