Frustrated motorists ignoring red lights
A businessman who works near three-way traffic lights in the centre of Newark says drivers are becoming so frustrated he fears violence could break out.
The temporary lights at the junction of Northgate and Queens Road are part of the Severn Trent one-way system while sewer work is carried out.
Mr Chris Fisher, who works on Northgate, said the temporary lights were poorly configured and did not appear to be monitored.
He said in the space of 30 minutes he saw three drivers lose patience and mount the pavement on the wrong side in order to drive around queueing cars and jump the red light, forcing oncoming cars to reverse out of the way.
“One woman got out of her car to scream at the lead queueing car, after they had all been trapped there unable to move after four complete green light phases with oncoming vehicles preventing them from progressing,” Mr Fisher said.
“Traffic is being trapped for upwards of 15 minutes because oncoming traffic is stuck between lights.
“People fed up of waiting are running the gauntlet and deliberately driving around queueing cars and forcing other cars to reverse.
“I have seen three vehicles lose patience and mount the pavement on the wrong side in order to drive around cars and jump the red light.
“Someone is going to get hurt and there does not seem to be much enthusiasm for fixing it.”
A spokesman for Severn Trent said although the temporary lights were connected to the sewer works, Nottinghamshire County Council was responsible for the management and operation of them.
Mr Peter Goode, traffic manager at Via East Midlands, which manages the county’s highways services on behalf of the council, said: “The temporary traffic lights that we installed at the junction of Northgate and Queens Road to facilitate the works have been configured to mimic the permanent lights as closely as possible, and our teams are continually monitoring these and making any adjustments as necessary to keep traffic moving as freely as possible.”
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