Kentish Express Ashford & District
‘Death trap’ junction action at last
Staff support access safety
Action is finally being taken to improve access for motorists after years of headache at a ‘death-trap’ junction in Ashford.
The A2070/Barrey Road junction has been a well-documented nightmare by all who work, shop and live near the Ashford Retail Park with long delays and minor accidents on the road.
Now it has been decided that part-signalisation will be introduced at the junction alongside a temporary 40mph speed restriction on the dual carriageway A2070 approaching it.
The latest updates were discussed at Ashford’s Joint Transportation Board meeting at the Civic Centre on Tuesday night.
Members agreed that part-signalisation should be introduced at the junction to improve road safety after ruling out two alternative options – a new roundabout or an acceleration lane.
Andy Moreton, from KCC, said: “Out of the three potential schemes, partial signalisation is the right decision.
“The introduction of signals means that vehicles can turn more safely.”
Former Ashford mayor Cllr George Koowaree was unable to attend but gave full support to the scheme.
In a statement, he said: “For 20 years I have been asking for traffic lights at this junction.
“Thank you both to KCC and Highways for undertaking the challenging work that should have been done years ago.”
It was also decided that a temporary 40mph speed limit would be put in place along the road, which will be enforced from Saturday, July 22.
Some members expressed concern as to how effective restrictions will be, as it is unclear whether number plate recognition cameras will be introduced.
Cllr Mike Angell said: “The speed limit is difficult to enforce without the police being involved. The majority of cars will still be doing 70 mph.
“The main thing here is road safety and whatever is going to be put there will be there for a long time so it has to be effective.”
It was also noted that if the speed restrictions do work they may cause “bunching” along the road and long delays.
The speed reduction will be put in place temporarily to see how well they work.
It was unclear when the partsignalisation will be in place, but councillors stressed the urgency of the matter and hope signals will be fully functioning before work on Junction 10a begins.
What do you think? Write to Kentish Express, Unit 4, Park Mall Shopping Centre Ashford, TN24 8RY or email kentishexpress@ thekmgroup.co.uk Workers at Ashford Retail Park and industrial estate and Sevington residents have been backing a safety campaign for years.
But many say the exit turning into the A2070 Bad Munstereifel Road has become a nightmare over the past year since new units on the site have been filled by new national retail brands.
Nick Hanson, from Ashbury Furniture, has written to various council officials over the years as well as Ashford MP Damian Green.
He said recently: “I have written to KCC and asked for action to improve our notorious junction.”
Retainagroup, based at the business park, also set up a similar petition in 2016.
The security firm’s chairman, Wendy Rowe, said: “We saw it coming. We knew as soon as we saw all the big retailers setting up.
“If we could have traffic lights, maybe we wouldn’t be in this position.”