Traffic lights added to Walsall roundabout of cones - but quickly disappear again

Concerns were raised about the stopgap roundabout installed at the junction of Bentley Road North and Wolverhampton Road West in Walsall, near Junction 10 of the M6, after a crash earlier this month left a man injured.

Two vans collided on the morning of March 9, leaving one on its side and its driver needing hospital treatment.

Since the crash, new barriers and signs to help warn drivers about the temporary layout have been put in place.

The traffic lights were spotted at the junction on Wednesday night, where Walsall Council is installing a new pedestrian and cyclist crossing.

A spokesman for Walsall Council initially said that a roundabout was chosen over temporary traffic lights "from both a safety and an operational perspective", but did admit after last week's van crash that "additional measures to slow down traffic in the lead up to the island" were being looked at.

However, the authority said on Thursday it did not have temporary traffic lights in place at the junction, suggesting they were installed on Wednesday "for a period of hours while specific work was undertaken".

Speaking earlier this week, a nearby business owner condemned the handling of the project.

They said: "The whole roadworks project has been a shambles. There has been over 50 accidents since Christmas alone, and probably at least one a day. One day in January I saw seven accidents in a day, which is horrific. Seven accidents in one day is not normal. There has been no signage for drivers, traffic is chaotic and it is just unsafe for everyone.

"I don't know who drew up these plans and passed it because it is chaos every day. They obviously aren't from around here to know how bad it is for drivers and us with businesses by the roundabout.

"My business has been affected, and I am greatly concerned because bus routes have been affected, the bus stop in front of my shop has gone, the crossings have gone, and so there is almost no way for my regular customers to get to me.

"I have regular elderly customers who cannot get to me now, because of the lack of a bus route and bus-stop, and the lack of crossings for them to walk to me. The road is not safe for anyone walking by with no safe crossings or pavements, and especially for the elderly.

"A lot of money has been spent unnecessarily on this project. Money that could have been spent somewhere else where it is actually needed.

"We had no correspondence to be told of what was going to happen. The project has been chaos, especially for us local businesses."

A resident who lives near the roundabout said: "If someone sat and watched the roundabout all day, they would definitely witness at least one accident happen. It is everyday. People are always taking risks and it either causes an accident or very nearly does.

"The roadworks project, the rushing drivers and the new cycle lane which was totally unnecessary, has made it worse.

"Sometimes buses and lorries struggle to go past each other due to the narrow lanes.

"I walk and sometimes have to take extra long routes in the wrong direction just to get around the roadworks, because there are no safe walkways or crossings. It is just chaos."

Walsall Council has been contacted for comment on the installation of the traffic lights.