Safety improvements to be installed at A420 collision hotspot
Safety work is set to take place at a collision hotspot on the A420 later this month.
Between 14 and 30 September, Oxfordshire County Council will carry out the work on the A420 west of Southmoor, on the staggered crossroads between Longworth and Charney Bassett.
The scheme will extend the current single lane in both directions from the Faringdon side by approximately 1km, so that it is just one lane both ways through the junction. The speed limit will also be reduced from 70mph to 50mph.
Councillor Gareth Epps, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “These changes will be welcomed by road users as a way of making this site safer. The current junction is a concern for many drivers, particular those exiting the side roads into and across two lanes of fast-moving traffic.”
The work is dependent on dry conditions. Weather permitting, traffic management will be in place at these dates and times while the work is carried out:
- Monday 14 September: lane closures from 9.30am - 3.30pm for preparatory works
- Tuesday 15 - 17 September: lane closures for grass cutting and gully work
- Friday 18 - Wednesday 30 September: layby closures, 24 hours a day, to accommodate equipment
- Monday 21 - Wednesday 30 September: lane closures from 7am - 7pm with traffic management in place; full road closures from 7pm - 7am, with a signed diversion route in operation.
The speed limit reduction was approved by Oxfordshire County Council last November to be appropriate for the new junction layout and as part of its review of the limits on all A and B roads in the county – one of the tools within its Vision Zero strategy to reduce fatal and severe injuries for all road users in Oxfordshire.
Cllr Epps added: “Our speed limits review is all about reducing deaths and serious injuries on our roads. The premise that no one should be killed or seriously injured as the result of a road collision, whatever mode of transport they are using, is at the heart of our Vision Zero strategy.”
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