‘Drivers to blame’ for junction issues

DRIVERS, rather than the road layout, is to blame for problems at a new junction, a council leader has said.

Andrew Morgan, leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council, was responding to a question from Councillor Pauline Jarman about speeding and aggresive overtaking at the new junction on the A4059 in Mountain Ash.

He said aggressive drivers and overtaking were the main problems in the area.

The junction in question serves the Mountain Ash Cross Valley Link near the village of Newtown.

The junction has undergone a design assessment and several stages of a road safety audit, and Cllr Morgan said it was fully compliant.

Cllr Morgan added: “We have a number of these junctions but a small number of people who see this section of road as a racetrack.”

He said similar issues affected the Aberdare bypass and a stretch of road from the Ynys roundabout up to the Cynon Valley.

He told Cllr Jarman that more signage had been installed and said the council had spoken to the police about enforcement in the area, but added that the layout was designed to maximise the flow of traffic.

Cllr Jarman said the road layout caused motorists to travel at speeds exceeding 30mph and there have been many nearmiss incidents.

“Despite the additional signage, the situation still prevails,” she said.

“My constituents describe the continuous blowing of horns as a nerve-racking version of Tubular Bells.”

Cllr Morgan said: “Roads are not unsafe. It is the people who drive on the roads who are unsafe.

“It is about making people aware. More signage is needed. It needs enforcement.”

He added: “It is completely safe as along as people drive to the way the road is designed.

“Further action is needed.”