News | Gyratory Special


downsmail.co.uk Gyratorymarks a year – but is it


AS the borough’s building programme continues to stoke concern about traffic congestion, we ask as 2018 gets underway: Has the £5.74mMaid- stone “gyratory system” helped keep the townmoving?


Themulti-million pound road re- configuration caused ninemonths of disruption formotorists before opening inMarchwith the aimof shaving 74 seconds fromthe aver- age journey. The Kent County Council (KCC)


Twice as long to reach town


SEAN Carter, chairman of South Maidstone Action for Roads and Transport (SMART), says the gyra- tory may well shaved the prom- ised 74 seconds off journey times through the town centre, but it takes twice as long to get into town because of the volume of traffic. “Our main concern is that de-


lays are getting worse in attempt- ing to reach the town centre with the new housing on the A274 and A229 and so any gains on the gy- ratory are wiped out. A minute gain is pretty irrelevant to your journey if it takes you twice as long to get there,” he said. He says the gyratory needs


“massive fine-tuning”, citing un- synchronised traffic lights and poor lane markings among the biggest concerns. He adds: “While those native to


Maidstone may have got used to the gyratory, for visitors this re- mains a confusing and potentially dangerous road systemto negoti- ate at a cost of millions for the sake of 75 seconds.” He says SMART is nowin talks in


an effort to provide a united voice for Maidstone when it comes to traffic issues.


What do the public want?


Clearer advanced signage of the approaching road layout to vehi- cles crossing St Peter’s Bridge. Larger and lit no-entry signs on the new section of gyratory  Line markings for vehicles exit- ing St Peter’s Bridge to the south- bound A229, and the continuation of the gyrator towards the A26/A20 Co-ordination of traffic lights on all approaches and the gyratory it- self to reduce congestion  Better protection for pedestri- ans and cyclists, particularly the tiny refuge following the closure of the subway  Dropped kerb for cyclists on St Peter’s Bridge


18 Maidstone Weald February 2018


project has left many with ques- tions over the cost, value and safety of the newroads scheme. The newlayout,which opened to


cars in December 2016, has had many critics and fewsupporters. South ward borough Cllr Brian


Clark says he has been confronted by vehicles travelling the wrong way (exiting St Peter’s Bridge) on three occasions while travelling northbound on theA229. In the latest incident, a black


Corsa drove at him on the wrong side of the road and then had to re- verse out of theway into oncoming traffic. He added: “The lack of guidance


for drivers unfamiliarwith the new layout is leading to vehicles head- ing, all too often, straight into on- coming traffic travelling on the A229 heading north. “I feel there is an urgent need to


reviewsafety before there is a seri- ous accident.” CllrDerekMortimer, a founding


member of South Maidstone Ac- tion for Roads and Transport (SMART), wants to see more ad- vance notice for drivers of the road layout changes on St Peter’s Bridge, white lining to guide vehicles exit- ing this bridge and more visible “no-entry” signs to stop vehicles entering the wrong way into the


Cllr DerekMortimer, left, believes the new Gyratory has put cyclists and pedestrians in danger, while Cllr Brian Clark, right, believes there is a “lack of guidance” for drivers using the new gyratory system


newnorthboundA229 section. He adds that with no statistics


supporting the success of the gyra- tory available until the spring, res- idents in the south remain unconvinced the gyratory recon- figuration is benefiting them. CllrMortimer added: “Residents


from the south are complaining of having suffered long journey times by car, and cyclists and pedestrians have raised safety concerns. “The refuge in the road is far too


small to compensate for the sub- way closure, leaving pedestrians and cyclists exposed to oncoming traffic; furthermore, dropped kerb-


ing is desperately needed for the St Peter’s Bridge cycle section to aid access.” KCC says signage and road


markings on the northbound ap- proach from Mill Street have been altered to improve lane disciplin- ing and reduce queues. Traffic signal timings will be


modified as conditions normalise and a validation of the control sys- temcan be undertaken to fully op- timise the signal operation. A spokesman said: “Observa-


tions from our control centre have indicated that the scheme is al- ready having an overall positive ef-


fect on traffic flow. “There will be monitoring to


demonstrate the benefits being car- ried out in February. “A report on its effectiveness is


due later in the year.” Fran Wilson, Maidstone Borough


Council leader, said: “MBC in- vested £1.14 million in the scheme and, while we still have concerns around access for pedestrians and cyclists from the west side of the town, the work carried out has im- proved the flow of traffic.”


Reporting by Dawn Kingsford


Traffic jams are still commonplace on the gyratory system, which opened in December 2016, with cars sometimes finding themselves un- able tomove past the hatchlines.


STUART Jeffery, of Maidstone Green Party, says money spent on the gy- ratory has been wasted. Mr Jeffrey, pictured above left with a party colleague, added: “The only


impact it has had is to make it far harder for pedestrians with the closure of subways and crossings. “We repeatedly called on the council to put the funds into traffic re-


duction rather than funding a scheme which would have encouraged more traffic – if it had worked. “We wanted dedicated bus lanes, including one from Park Wood to the centre of town, proper cycle lanes and better pavements.”


Mixed reaction from local transport firms


BOSSES running transport busi- nesses in Maidstone have given the gyratory system a mixed re- ception. Bus operators say there has


been little impact on its ability to serve its passengers. But one car hire manager says


the gyratory is “poorly thought- out” while a taxi company con- troller conceded it “kinda works”. Norman Kemp, Nu-Venture’s


director, says the gyratory has eased times for through-traffic travelling from south to north but created a new pinch point causing delays for buses travelling west into town. He said: “Any move to ease


Maidstone’s acute traffic problem is to be warmly welcomed, and I commend the South East Local Enterprise Partnership for listen- ing to bus operators about the conversion of Fairmeadow to a two-way road a few years ago. “Perhaps the highways plan-


ners should come and talk to the local bus companies to develop future plans for local road schemes. Such a meeting would be productive, as we all want to get Maidstone moving again.”


Norman Kemp, director of Nu-Ven- ture, wants a meeting with high- ways planners


Oliver Monahan, Kent’s area


managing director at Arriva, said: “The new gyratory system works appear to have had minimal im- pact to our services and we are still affected by heavy congestion at peak times. “Bus priority is the solution to


reducing traffic congestion. Effi- cient bus services help to reduce


downsmail.co.uk


Gyratory Special | News making a difference to our town?


Readers have their say on the new system at the gyratory


WE ASKED users on our Facebook page if they thought the Gy- ratory had improved journey


times


through the centre of town:


Carl Dixon: “I travel from Rochester into Maidstone to pick my son up from a school club on the Tonbridge Road. As if this isn’t bad enough, I re- turn home to Ditton via Hermitage Lane. At best, between 4-6 pm. I can make this journey in 1hr 20 mins.”


Lisa Lomas: “Used to take me an hour to do four miles. My report on my car for the whole of November said my average speed for the entire month was 4mph. You figure out my answer.”


Kellie Obermuller: “I’ve noticed a massive difference for my daily jour- ney. Having to come out from the St Peters Street junction every day not having the traffic come around and over the bridges means the traffic flows out of the junction are better.”


Brigitte Jell: “Probably quicker com- ing in from the south route from Loose, but as someone else pointed out, heading to Rocky Hill from Royal Engineers Road takes forever and traffic builds up way past the White Rabbit Roundabout. Traffic lights at the bottom of High Street only lets four or five vehicles through to go up Rocky Hill at each sequence change. So, no! Not a lot different! Worse the other way in now!”


Caroline Hicks: “It takes much longer to get through town, especially at peak times.”


Louise 'Holden' Reeve: “The route I use the most is from Fairmeadow to- wards the gyratory (with Fremlin be- hind) and it’s certainly no better. The lights don't appear to be in sync, the gap for cars to wait in as they turn to go over the bridge is too small.”


Maureen Rutherford: “The configu-


the number of cars on the roads, which release capacity for essen- tial car journeys and reduce air pollution. “Arriva’s Maidstone network


carried out more than five million passenger journeys in 2017 alone, which had a positive effect on re- ducing the number of vehicles congesting our streets.” Duncan Burnett, assistant man-


ager at Maidstone car hire com- pany Avis,


explaining how to negotiate the road changes to visitors hiring a car in the town is “a nightmare” and feels the new system is “poorly thought-out”.


claimed that


ration of the traffic lights causes con- gestion in the mornings from Royal Engineers Road going toward Ton- bridge Road, but the density of traf- fic cannot be addressed. A Leeds/Langley bypass would be a bonus.”


Dave Shepherd: “I use the system every day in all directions The light sequence is not right; traffic coming from Rocky Hill always seem to block the box junction.”


Lian Bennett: “Not if you’re coming down from Rocky Hill in rush hour, the lights all the way round are not in sync and traffic backs right back up the hill with no one moving on a green light!”


Lynn Boulding: “Yes, I think it is slightly better, but let’s be honest, every town centre in the UK is a nightmare not just Maidstone.”


Stephen Paine: “Much better if you’re coming out of St Peters Street, or heading to/from Bluebell Hill from Tonbridge Road. Seems to be a bit slower coming through town from Loose road direction.”


Lisa Norman: “Someone in front of me drove down the wrong side of road. Luckily, nothing was coming the other way! Think it’s a bit better but always loads of last-minute cut- ting-up.”


Sabrina Fisher: “It hasn’t made any difference in my opinion, it’s only made traffic going up the Tonbridge Road a lot slower, and so many peo- ple can’t get in the correct lane! I have lost count of the number who have cut me up because they are in the left hand lane and need to be in the right!”


Shelley Shrimpton: “To be honest it’s slightly confusing, especially if you are new to the area, and to be honest I haven’t seen much of an im- provement. More accidents maybe.”


John Ryan: “It’s a major improve- ment!”


Dean Hodgson, a cab controller


at Express Cabs at Maidstone West station, says the gyratory system “kinda works” but would have preferred a flyover from Bishops Way. He added: “In the past, if we


had a fare from Tovil to Barming we would use Farleigh Bridge, but now we use the town centre, un- less there has been an accident and there were a few of these when it first opened because of the confusion caused by poor sig- nage. “Ultimately, the new road sys-


tem has helped, providing you know the town centre.”


Maidstone Weald February 2018 19


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25