Worst Junction Worst in the UK
Coventry has the worst junction in the UK, this was recently reported by the Coventry Telegraph. A recent survey named the Tollbar Island on the A45 as the worst junction in Great Britain. Not only do the queues of traffic back up daily at this junction but they cause unnecessary delays to families and business alike. It is reported that delays at junctions like the Tollbar island cost business millions of pounds a year.
Autoglass recently reported that,
- 58% of accidents happen at junctions
- 82% of women are scared by junctions
- 55% of drivers plan their route to avoid bad junctions
This does not resolve the problem but just moves the traffic to another area which then causes problems for that area. This where so called rat runs appear from.
Spaghetti Junction in Birmingham, Britain’s very first so called free flowing interchange, topped the list of confusing junctions with 45% of motorists voting. The Magic Roundabout in Swindon came second in the poll with 25% of the votes and in third place was the Boreham Interchange in Essex with 13% of drivers naming it Britain’s worst junction. The Boreham Interchange also sits on one of the most notorious roads, the A12 and has the home to Essex Police on its door step. Probably for a good reason.
So what can we do to avoid the problems that occur at junctions like the Tollbar Island and Spaghetti Junction. We cannot promise that you won’t meet lots of traffic but by following these suggestions you might make home in time to spend some time with your family or make that important meeting,
- Plan your route
- Have your Sat Nav ready with alternative routes
- Listen to the radio and set the traffic function
- Check the internet for reported problems
- Leave early if you think there is going to be delays. Better be early than late.
When using motorways make sure you know where there are road works or redevelopment as these can add hours of delays especially on the notorious M25, M1 and M6.
Unfortunately since the early motoring times there has been traffic delays, whether it be a man with a red flag or a car accident and many of these are at junctions due to drivers not dealing with junctions properly. Our advice is,
- Approach the junction calm and make sure you use the MSM procedure
- Make sure you adjust your speed and position whilst making sure you know what is going on around you
- Watch out for the signs which will show you the direction you should be going in and what type of junction you will encounter
- Make sure you indicate properly and at the right time
- Be aware of cyclists, motorcyclists and long vehicles as they may react differently to the junction
- Look out for pedestrians
- Watch out for vehicles changing lanes at the last moment or indicating wrongly
Happy Motoring!