A45 - A46 Comments

This junction has always been bad, once again the planners think that by slowing the traffic, using lights or roundabouts, that there will be a safe solution to problem junctions. Light free, roundabout free, multi level juctions are required to all of the A45 from the M45 to Birmingham.

I can remember when it had no lights: aaagh! I was making weekly visits to Walsgrave so had to use it. Last weekend I was just entering the A45, heading for the Warwick bypass, when the three lanes suddenly became two and I was in the middle, with a car alongside. Not nice. I thought I'd got it right for once.

This was, indeed, a suicide island before they introduced traffic lights. It is somewhat better now.

The main problem is that A46 is an important connection between M40 and M6/M69. In particular, a lot of HGVs negotiate it in this direction. This roundabout is only one in a sequence of five that have to be negotiated. The optimal solution would really be to extend M69 and get rid of all five roundabouts.

I worked on the roundabout a couple of years ago (part of the pre-works for the improvements) - it was horrific! One day we noticed that the lights had failed, and barely had the words "this is an accident waiting to happen" left my mouth, before it had happened! I used to take the back roads out of there each night rather than risk my neck on suicide island. Over the course of a week there were four crashes (including a BMW totalling one of the many sets of traffic lights), numerous near misses and a car fire. (OK, probably not the roundabout's fault.)

Getting onto Rowley Road from the A46 in the mornings, even as early as 07.20, can be a bit of a nightmare. You have to get in the right lane! Getting from Rowley Rd to the A46 in the evening is an absolute nightmare, traffic from Siskin Drive blocks traffic from Rowley Road. Lorries block exit and entrance. They just sit there, blocking the way from the mini to the main roundabout. It took me nearly 25 minutes one Friday evening just to get from Rowley Road to the A46! I plan my departure from work very carefully now, either 15 minutes to or 15 minutes after the hour, be that 16.00, 17.00 or 18.00.

This roundabout is well known as "suicide island" (island being the local name for roundabout).

The fact that the airport is getting more flights has made the junction busier, plus the fact that the end of the runway is a matter of yards from the centre of the roundabout makes for fun, as the jets are but a few feet above your head as you fight for your space!

Toll Bar End, Coventry- an absolute almighty death trap. I drove to the airport there today, what is this thing trying to be, a junction, roundabout, trafffic light or a hybrid of all of them? The signing is abysmal, the lights are hard to spot, the lane layout confusing and it has far too many roads leading to it.

It's getting fixed! The Highways Agency suggest a start date of 2008 for a grade seperated junction with the A46(S) flowing into a widened A45(W) and vice versa (two major roads sharing a two lane dual carriageway which also happens to be the Coventry bypass - whose clever idea was that!). This should sort out most of the problems and ease the pressure on those traffic lights.

I use the junction quite a bit, sometimes following the A45 and other times coming from the M45 and on to the A46 and, although most users of the island have no idea of lane discipline, it works well. With regards to possible upgrades, although there is a Texaco petrol station as you come round from A46 to A45(S) the two houses next to the petrol station appear to have been the subject of a compulsory purchase order so maybe there is hope for a direct link between A46 and A45(S), although the A423 junction a couple of hundred yards up the road may put paid to that idea.

The main problem is the lack of free-flow along the A45 - and the lane indications on the signs getting ignored by everyone. I was pretty much forced to take the A46 east from there the other day.

From Summer 2004 Coventry Airport, immediately south of Tollbar End, will start budget flights to Europe (ThomsonFly). So what's the betting that will create even more car-traffic at the island?!

In defence of this roundabout, it is hugely improved since the introduction of traffic lights about 3 years ago, prior to that the queues could add 30 minutes to journey times. As to the route which should get the priority for grade separation - definitely west-north, not just becasue this is my daily commute, but also because these 2 are by far the busiest roads onto the junction.