Residents: Our traffic snarl-up fears for A127

7:30am Thursday 23rd August 2012 in Echo News

Residents: Our traffic snarl-up fears for A127 Residents: Our traffic snarl-up fears for A127

FAMILIES claim Southend’s arterial road will not cope with traffic to the town’s increasingly busy airport, creating rat runs through surrounding streets.

Southend Airport ’s target of increasing passenger numbers to two million a year by 2020 strikes fear into people living in Prittlewell, who claim their roads are already clogged up with people avoiding jams on the A127 .

Ric Morgan, an Independent councillor after recently crossing the floor from the Lib Dems, says more than 100 cars an hour are using Colemans Avenue, Midhurst Avenue and Rochester Drive to cut out parts of Prince Avenue, in Westcliff .

Mr Morgan, who lives in Hobleythick Lane, Westcliff, which is also affected, said: “I know the increase in traffic coming down Prince Avenue to the airport is going to clog up the road.

“All our junctions on the A127 are going to be seriously congested. That’ll make our roads particularly dangerous.”

Residents are calling for speed bumps, junction improvements, the removal of traffic lights at Cuckoo Corner and even a relief road from Shoebury to the airport to ease jams.

But Southend Council refused to acknowledge a problem, pointing to a survey as part of Tesco’s application for a store in Short Street showing town centre traffic decreased by 16 per cent between 2008 and 2011 as people swapped to using buses or trains.

The survey said traffic was expected to increase as more people used the airport, but the road network would cope because a lot of the journeys were at off-peak times.

Tony Cox, Tory Southend councillor responsible for transport, said he had received no complaints about traffic in Prittlewell He added: “I would describe it as adequate in the fact you don’t get major hold-ups. Obviously flows could be improved, but I’ve never experienced any problems.”

He said keeping the A127 moving was key to preventing rat runs and the council was designing improvements for the Bell and Kent Elms junctions ready for when funding is available.

Comments(20)

BASILBRUSH says...
7:52am Thu 23 Aug 12

According to previous reports the Airport is on target for 1 million passengers in the first year already. Except on sunny days (as per normal and due to the gas works), I've not noticed any difference or significant delays and I use these routes everyday.
The Cuckoo Corner lights have made a big difference to that too.
So while they may fear problems (I suspect this is drummed up by SAEN), I doubt it will be a major issue.
Saying that, any improvements still welcome ;)

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Dangerous driver says...
7:55am Thu 23 Aug 12

Stupid Southend people moaning again. You chose to live there, so stop moaning or move away.

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j-w says...
8:42am Thu 23 Aug 12

Hobleythick Lane has looked like that for about 10 years!
Didn't know so many people from the West of southend were using the airport, you don't think they might actually be going to Tescos or home bargains? who knows the new Tescos at short street might even cut traffic in the roads listed above.

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BASILBRUSH says...
8:54am Thu 23 Aug 12

I will say again, the traffic lights at Cuckoo corner are a vast improvement and that's from my experience of using them daily.
As for a Shoebury relief road, lovely, but look at the fuss our local protest against progress and live in Southend past group made about Priory Crescent. ;)

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a127scamera says...
9:16am Thu 23 Aug 12

If the lights at 'the Bell' were timed so as to allow more traffic through on the minor roads, then the so called rat runs would not be an issue. Dependant on reaction times of those in the queues, sometimes as many as ten cars can make it through on one sequence, at other times with the all to common ditherer, two to three cars at most...who wants to sit in a queue when you can use other legitimate routes.
If you want to see real trafic management screw-up, go to Harp House roundabout and see the issues with the misplacement of a speed hump at the entrance to the Airport retail park on a Saturday afternoon, made worse by the opening of 'Home Bargains' bringing in even more traffic.

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j-w says...
9:23am Thu 23 Aug 12

Totally agree with a127scamera about that hump and have mentioned it a lot in past posts. That hump needs removing, its pointless and causes more problems than it solves.

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andyh says...
9:29am Thu 23 Aug 12

Part of this prolem appears to stem from the incredible decision when the Tesco roundabout was built to make access between Tescos and Westbourne/Southbour
ne (A1158) almost impossible. These are the main North-South arteries in the area but the only reasonable way to Tescos from them is via Rochester Drive and to get a Southbound route is even messier.

The layout in this respect is so bad that it must have been a deliberate decision so WHY was it done that way?

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Nebs says...
9:45am Thu 23 Aug 12

The congestion at The Bell junction is easily solved. Stop all right turns from all roads at that junction. It will make the light sequences simple, east west, and north south.

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Julian Ware-Lane says...
9:46am Thu 23 Aug 12

Cllr Ric Morgan is a Liberal Party councillor, not an Independent.

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j-w says...
9:51am Thu 23 Aug 12

Not according to the council website.

http://apps.southend
.gov.uk/democracy/co
uncillors.asp?CllrID
=1401

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SARFENDMAN says...
3:04pm Thu 23 Aug 12

Julian Ware-Lane wrote:
Cllr Ric Morgan is a Liberal Party councillor, not an Independent.
Was, he resigned from the Conservative Party, sorry I meant Liberal Democrat. He is now an INDEPENDENT.

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j-w says...
3:07pm Thu 23 Aug 12

Sarfendman, "Liberal party" is different from the "lib dems" but maybe if there is only one councillor it counts as independent.

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yaymar says...
3:43pm Thu 23 Aug 12

I think Tesco on the A127 should be renamed "Tenko" after the fictional POW camp! The past few weeks, when picking my Mum up it has taken me over an hour to just get out of the car park. She has now boycotted Tenko in favour of Asda as have a lot of people if the empty spaces in the car park were anything to go by, althoiugh it doesn't seem to have made "escaping" any easier!!

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Recruit1989 says...
4:56pm Thu 23 Aug 12

yaymar wrote:
I think Tesco on the A127 should be renamed "Tenko" after the fictional POW camp! The past few weeks, when picking my Mum up it has taken me over an hour to just get out of the car park. She has now boycotted Tenko in favour of Asda as have a lot of people if the empty spaces in the car park were anything to go by, althoiugh it doesn't seem to have made "escaping" any easier!!
People moan and winge about being stuck in Tesco's car park, they go in complaining like they can open a magic gate and let everyone out the secret escape road, I even saw someone calling the police in his car the other day while he was "stuck". There is nothing they can do to ease the congestion at the end of the day so if your going to shop at peak times be prepared to queue. As for the use of the side roads is it any suprise when the Gas works on Fairfax Drive caused so many delays?
The Bell lights need serious retiming done considering you watch streams of traffic pass for 10 minutes then see the 2 cars in front of you go to be greeted by another red light within 4 and a half seconds of it turning green.

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Keptquiettillnow says...
5:58pm Thu 23 Aug 12

How is it going to get any better with more and more cars on the road.

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nigeltheduck says...
8:19am Sat 25 Aug 12

The airport has not increased traffic by any significant margins so I am not sure why they are being blamed for anything? Traffic flow into Southend is the best it has been for years so I am happy as I get home quicker now!

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Cockle says...
3:04pm Sat 25 Aug 12

"Ric Morgan, an Independent councillor after recently crossing the floor from the Lib Dems, says more than 100 cars an hour are using Colemans Avenue, Midhurst Avenue and Rochester Drive to cut out parts of Prince Avenue, in Westcliff ."

Simple answer to this one is just to block off the access from Colemans Avenue and the service road onto the A127 Prince Avenue, as they did a few years ago at Brendon Way. This will stop traffic using the roads as a cut through and will also help traffic flow on A127 as traffic will no longer be impeded by exiting traffic from Colemans Ave pushing into the traffic flow without any right of way, which is an accident hazard, nor by vehicles slowing to leave A127 into the service road or Colemans Ave. Win-win for all concerned as the residents of those roads have ample egress onto Hobleythick Lane and Carlton Ave.

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jolllyboy says...
4:38pm Sat 25 Aug 12

Tesco roundabout was done to make people shop at Tesco. No other town would be so stupid as to divert a major A road so that you have to pass the supermarket. Legal payouts I feel to the council here knowing that there would be an airport coming (as did Toomeys). The roads will only get worse made more so because of the closure of Eastwoodbury lane. The roundabout at Tesco is the most dangerous I have come across in a long time. Closures suggested would put more pressure at the Hobleythick area and we must remember this is a major route for the hospital. Prittlewell chase is narrowed already because of the cycle track.

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psorias says...
4:44pm Sat 25 Aug 12

Ha Ha! I can see my car in the photo. In case any one wants to know I was not going to the airport lol

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Nebs says...
11:20pm Sat 25 Aug 12

I wonder who is in the van blocking the Keep Clear area. Happens every time someone wants to turn right out of the petrol station. They should put a yellow box and a camera there, they'd make a fortune.

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