Improved safety proposals for A38

Residents in Kingsway and Quedgeley will be given the opportunity to have their say on proposed improvements to the A38 in Gloucester.

Highways officers have been working alongside colleagues at Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership and Gloucestershire Constabulary to look at ways to improve safety along the A38.

With more development in the south of the city, the A38 has seen a marked increase in the amount of traffic in the area and a new junction built to serve Kingsway residents.

This has lead to calls for improvements to be made to the road to help keep residents and motorists that use the road and surrounding areas safe.

Gloucestershire County Council has already put in place a number of safety changes to the A38. These have seen safety barriers installed at Waterwells roundabout and a backup power supply added to traffic lights on Cole Avenue in the event of power cuts.

The speed limit on the B4008 in Hardwicke has also been reduced to further improve safety in the area.

The council have now carried out speed surveys and monitored the amount of vehicles using the road, as well as the number of pedestrians crossing the A38 at Kingsway.

These surveys have helped to inform proposals to improve safety on the road by lowering the speed limit from 70mph to 60mph and to make changes to the lanes at the Kingsway crossing.

Cllr Mark Hawthorne, local member for Quedgeley, said: “This is really good news for local residents and motorists alike.

“I’ve been campaigning for a decrease to the speed limit on the A38 and I’m happy that the council has put these proposals forward to help improve safety on the road.”

Cllr Barry Kirby, local member for Kingsway, said: “It is great to see some progress on this issue. I, alongside Kingsway Residents, have been campaigning for improvements to the A38 to make it safer for pedestrians and vehicles alike.

“I hope that residents use this opportunity to ensure their voices are heard.”

Cllr Nigel Moor, cabinet member responsible for road safety, said: “We’ve listened to local concerns about the safety of this junction and have already made a number of improvements in the area.

“We want to hear residents’ views on these additional proposals which will help to further improve safety in the area.”

The county council will be making contact with local residents and stakeholders to get their views on the proposals in the coming weeks.

Gloucester News Centre – http://gloucesternewscentre.co.uk