Call for ‘immediate’ action at Fishwick Corner, near Bury St Edmunds, following latest crash
A call for urgent safety improvements has been made at a notorious accident blackspot.
Mid Suffolk District councillor, David Bradbury, said action must be taken ‘immediately’ at Fishwick Corner, Thurston, near Bury St Edmunds, after three-vehicle crash yesterday.
Residents have been calling for safety measures for more than a year and have dubbed the crossroads ‘lethal’.
They say accidents ‘happen weekly’.
Work is due to start on a new staggered junction at the site - but cllr Bradbury has called on the county council to step in now.
He said: “This [the accident on Tuesday] could have been much more serious had the van been a smaller car or someone on a motorbike or pedal cycle.
“I think we need a highways team here immediately to actually look at the problem and not just look at the OS or Google maps.
“It would help drivers didn’t only pay attention to their satnav and look at the road. But anything that the county council can do, must be done before someone is killed.
“I don’t want to see headlines like cyclist or driver killed at accident blackspot.
“No one wants that – especially when we all know the problem can be simply solved.”
Developer Bloor Homes is due to start work constructing a staggered junction at the site at the end of September.
The junction was a condition for it then to be able to build 210 houses, off nearby Beyton Road.
A spokesperson said on-site infrastructure and enabling works have been put in place that the junction work will last ‘approximately 14 weeks’.
Cllr Bradbury, who represents Thurston, added: “The problem can be summed up in just a few words and easily fixed with some temporary signs or even temporary traffic lights while the building work is taking place.
“No one wants traffic lights in the village but I can’t see another option while the building work is taking place.”
He said some of the problems include: yellow warning signs on Mount Road obscured by hedging; insufficient or inadequate signage on New Road and Fishwick Corner; excessive speeding and the need for 30mph signs and information displays.
He also questions why Mount Road is a 40mph limit from the Pokeriage junction.
Local campaigners say accidents have increased over the past five years due the number of nearby housing developments and more recently, with traffic avoiding ongoing construction works on the A14.
Mid Suffolk District Council made it a condition that work on the junction is completed before the homes off Beyton Road.
Some residents feel the planned changes however will not solve the problem.
At present, up to 1,248 new homes have been approved in Thurston across seven sites including Ixworth Road, Norton Road, Beyton Road and Barton Road.
Suffolk County Council has been approached for comment.
