Traffic chaos highlighting a lack of vision

AS I write this letter (Thursday, October 7, around 6.30pm) I’ve just noticed reports of gridlock in Hull city centre, with motorists advised to avoid Castle Street, due to a burst water main. That is the Castle Street which is the main route between east and west – some would say the only route.

Now, burst water mains are going to happen occasionally, but, just like the A63 and, to a lesser extent, Hedon Road, one single event causes complete traffic chaos – burst water main today, vehicle accident tomorrow.

Situations such as this remind me of the short-sightedness of the planners in respect of the Castle Street development; something I have written about on several occasions over the years.

As drivers wind their way along the badly-lit, reduced-width lanes on the carriageway which is Castle Street, they surely must realise that the problem is the mixture of large lorries and motor cars/smaller vehicles.

Why wasn’t a plan developed to construct several joined-up flyovers, to take all the east-west and westeast traffic (largely HGVS) from Smith & Nephew to Hull Prison, leaving the existing “low” road for local traffic. It can’t have cost any more than the massive budget being used right now; it would have saved £23m as well, on the footbridge named after Mary somebody-orother (I know I could look it up, but I shouldn’t have to).

As a trunk road, this development is the work of Highways England, although I’m certain the local council(s) will have had significant input. It just seems to smack of the usual lack of vision often associated with Hull. Perhaps the Humber Lagoon Scheme will grow some legs and solve all the problems.

Last week, I had to travel from east to west Hull on a couple of occasions, both times around 10.30am-11.30am, using (the now single lane) Freetown Way. Traffic was nose-to-tail on both occasions when heading towards the Beverley Road/spring Bank/ Ferensway junction. On neither occasion did I see a single cyclist using the Freetown way cycle lanes – not a single one.

On Tuesday, October 5, I had arranged to take my grandson to the Odeon cinema on Kingston Retail Park; the showing began at 5.40pm. We had an errand to do on Holderness Road and I took him for something to eat at a popular fast food eaterie. After eating, we had time to kill – then the fun began.

En route from Holderness Road to Kingston Retail Park, I missed the slip road that takes you onto Mount Pleasant, which now resembles a slalom run, due to those plastic lane dividers which have created a cycle lane, otherwise known as a death trap for cyclists.

No problem, turn left onto Clarence Street and left again onto Great Union Street takes me back to the main road leading to Castle Street. It was persisting down, and when we reached the junction near Drypool Bridge, all traffic just stopped; for about ten minutes we didn’t move an inch.

Once things got moving it was OK and, yes, we managed to get to see James Bond in time, although I was shaken and stirred at times during the short journey!

Someone told me years (decades) ago that all towns and cities that have a navigable river running through them will always experience traffic problems. Hull may have blown its best chance of removing that problem; only time will tell. Who are the “knucklebrains” that come up with these second-rate solutions?

Rob Milner, Hedon.