Evil Sid Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Had to go to the doctors today. His surgery is on Wilderspool Causeway. My normal route would be down wilson patten street into the second lane at the guardian office then into the second lane round the bridge and and then follow the road over the bridge. simple. imagine my surprise then when I went through the lights to find I was in the outside lane to go down mersey street. Fortunately there was enough of a gap for me to get into the right hand lane only to find that now took me to the riverside retail park. A slight lowering of speed and I managed to get into the correct lane to get me round that bit and then another quick lane shuffle to get into the right lane for the causeway. Coming back I needed to call into the retail park so got into the left hand lane that would normally give me access to the retail park lane. Not so good readers this once again put me in the outside lane to go up mersey street. A quick wobble into the correct lane and it was park up at the retail park and have a breather. Apparently it was done to ease the through traffic on mersey street. seems to have worked as there was only about three cars going that way. the rest were parked up trying to figure out which lane they needed to be in. I also am informed that these were put in overnight but which night I don't know. BUT WHY, heaven help anybody now trying to get across there with a sat nav. If the locals are confused just think how a stranger would cope. Would like to know how many extra accidents occur in the next few days due to people having to switch lanes even more than they did before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
middlec Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Lunacy is the only usable word I can describe for this. Who on earth thinks up these new road systems? Will this one work in the long term? Time will tell, although I think not. What do others think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazj Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Crazy Crazy Crazy.... and no advanced warning (as far as I can see) of any alterations. I believe the last road designer in Warrington was viciously savaged by his guide dog..... seems this one is from the same school of thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wahl Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 road safety are the culprits they act with impunity and do what they want to roads without any consultation or consideration. They want traffic jams they want slower traffic they want everyone to walk they support the illegal road humps and road narrowing. time traffic committee members actually did something not much chance of that as they are all useless councillors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevofaz25 Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 caught out trying to get to the retail park and ended up off down the Causeway- not good- trying to get across to Knutsford Rd is a proper pain too- gonna just go the way I useta and take my chance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter T Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 I didn't know anything had changed. Came through there 1215 ish, and stayed in left lane as normal. Luckily for other cars I was going down Mersey St instead of Knutsford Rd. or there might have been a coming together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Sid Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 think the idea is to divert all the traffic down mersey street and around the island ,back down mersey street and over the bridge. After all there is a speed camera down there so anybody in a hurry and in the wrong lane would have to use that route or risk cutting across into the right lane. or is that just me being cynical again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 I have raised the issue as part of my opinion piece which has attracted the attention of at least one of our elected members! http://www.warrington-worldwide.co.uk/articles/14034/1/Political-infighting-alive-and-kicking/Page1.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Sid Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 I did read your article but decided to bring it to the attention to those who might have skipped over the last bit and thus missed the part about the lane changes. P.S. No I am not being nice to Gary to get in his good books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdrianR Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Madness. I understand the need to clear the A49 north, but why outside the acadamy have they allocated the first 2 lanes on the left to that direction. Who either following the signsor using local knowledge would drive down Wilson Patten Street to head up Winwick road when there is the expressway past Central. There will at peak times be a handful of drivers going that way. So most of the traffic down there will now be squuezed into one lane for all routes across the river. Sorry but this is going to create either more crashes or more blocking of the new routes as there now isnt enough lane space to hold the required traffic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter T Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Obviously not enough gridlock in town. :-D This PLUS the lights at Cockhedge will create even more chaos. Who hires these people??? And I bet they don't live in Warrington. Dread to think how bad it will be when one of the motorways closes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cleopatra Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 think the idea is to divert all the traffic down mersey street and around the island ,back down mersey street and over the bridge. After all there is a speed camera down there so anybody in a hurry and in the wrong lane would have to use that route or risk cutting across into the right lane. or is that just me being cynical again. You can't go down the same street twice. You have to go down it then back up it or, alternatively, up it then back down it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Sid Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 You have obviously not seen the new lane changes, anything is possible with them. Believe the council have issued an apology for not posting notification signs about the new lane changes, apparently it was the contractors who were at fault for that. Certainly wasn't the council was it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boris1066 Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 I went through there twice yesterday to Chester Road and never noticed the difference. Mind you I'm never quite in the right lane! I learned my roundabout skills in Jubail, nary a lane marked at all !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazj Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Chester Road has always been the right hand lane so you may not have noticed anyway Boris! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevofaz25 Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 signs have gone up today- they are there if you look for them but too many locals are going to be caught out I fear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
algy Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Caught me out twice in the last few days, thankfully other motorists let me in or I would have possibly finished up going down Mersey Street - old habits die hard! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Well having only travelled across Bridge foot a few times in the past week or so from the Winwick direction towards Stockton heath I wondered what you were all going on about (I usually do the outward journey via Kingsway as it is quicker in that direction). The road markings were clear and not faded AT LONG LAST... and I remember thinking to myself 'Well done WBC, thats much better and about time too'. But good grief. Tonight at 6.50 pm I had to go via Bridge Foot ie from Stockton Heath, to Bridge Foot, and then heading right around towards Knutsford Road. I fell into the same lane trap you described in your original post Evils although I thought I was lucky in some respects as I was somewhat pre-warned having at least learned about the possible problems from this topic and Gary news article. It was a nightmare and even knowing that something had changed I finished up having to swap lanes twice. I finished up in the single lane to Riverside when I thought that was the one to go right around and had to swap again, a car doing the same nearly reshaped the rear another car and and it wasn't their fault as everyone seemd confused. I can't imagine what it must be light at rush hour will all the confusions. SCAREY is the only work I can think of. It is absolute madness that there STILL aren't any signs up warning drivers of any changes as like I said I knew something had changed but it still really caught me out. The marking on the road are no help either at the moment as all eyes really do need to be on other cars and the inevitable lane swapping. PROMINENT WARNING SIGNS/DIRECTIONAL SIGNS ARE DENINATELY NEEDED WITHOUT DELAY. Oh and as I was at the lights on the bridge before turning right (facing towards the right of Bridge Street) I noticed the traffic light is somehow now out of alighnemt. Not sure if something has hit it but the lights don't point in the direction of the road and they are facing the shrubs on the central green island Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Full story and council explanation (apology) will be on news page at 7am in the morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazj Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 but of course the arrogant council sods will not bite the bullet and put it back the way it was before but will instead pay out thousands to have it re-evaluated and the like.... remember the Westbrook lights? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Full story and council explanation (apology) will be on news page at 7am in the morning. Will they be up early like you and putting up some signs to warn people etc at 7am tomorrow too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted September 19, 2012 Report Share Posted September 19, 2012 Warning signs are up http://www.warrington-worldwide.co.uk/articles/14037/1/Highway-chiefs-say-sorry-for-Bridgefoot-confusion/Page1.html Article generating a lot of interest! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wahl Posted September 19, 2012 Report Share Posted September 19, 2012 An ex councillor nce told me that the people in the traffic and safety department were well educated qualified professionals. This is why roads in Warrington are such a mess...these clowns have no experience and no common sense. Neither will they admit they are wrong. best avoid the area altoghether then they will be happy and can introduce lots of cycle lanes/rip Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazj Posted September 19, 2012 Report Share Posted September 19, 2012 That's why they voted for 20mph limits everywhere; to minimise the damage when all the accidents are caused by their incompetant management of the roads! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Parish Posted September 19, 2012 Report Share Posted September 19, 2012 I told a senior officer last Tuesday morning (11th) that "It was right to re-jig the lanes at Bridgefoot eastbound but two lanes just for A49 northbound? I hope someone's watching but I'll be surprised if it doesn't cause traffic to tail back on Wilson Patten Street." The fact that the new lane markings went in without the warning signs would be down to the contractor. I've now asked to see the "modelling" behind this one (i.e. modelling what happens to traffic flows with a change like this) - some of it is counter-intuitive, e.g. on rare occasions, opening a new road can cause delays and closing a road can mean that traffic flows more smoothly; google "Braess's paradox"! Traffic Committee only deals with stuff where proposals have been advertised and there have been objections. Most road marking changes are simple and obvious stuff, but I'd quite like to change the committee remit so at least there's a list of them on the committee agenda. In most cases members would happily go with officer recommendation, but there may be some where we at least challenge the assumptions. Eastbound on A57 approaching Martinscroft is another daft one - it says M6 in the right lane and A57 in the middle lane; OK for M6 northbound, but for anyone wanting M6 southbound it puts them in the wrong lane over the motorway bridge. I'm told this one is on the "to-do" list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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