Solihull Council is due to start work on a new scheme to improve a major route into Solihull town centre by installing traffic lights at the busy Blossomfield Road/Dingle Lane/Danford Lane junction.
The scheme is expected to significantly improve traffic capacity on the B4102 Blossomfield Road corridor. This is a heavily congested route into Solihull town centre particularly during the morning and afternoon peak periods; accommodating 95 bus services.
The Blossomfield Road junction itself handles 23,000 vehicles during an average day and currently comprises a roundabout with pelican crossings on either side of the Blossomfield Road arms. Due to the roundabout’s compact nature its two circulatory lanes are currently seldom used.
The junction is located in close proximity to three secondary schools, a technical college and a primary school meaning that there is very high demand for the pelican crossings during school start and finish times.
As part of the scheme and in order to create a more efficient operation of the junction, the current roundabout will be removed and replaced with traffic signals. This will mean that each arm of the junction will have a dedicated green light at each traffic cycle. This is in contrast to the current uncontrolled roundabout where the high usage of the pedestrian crossings slows the movement of vehicles through the junction and leads to queuing.
The scheme will also install a new controlled crossing point on Dingle Lane, improving road safety for those who walk to the local schools in the area. It will also provide a cycle priority lane on the Blossomfield Road at both approaches to the junction.
The work, which will be undertaken by the Council’s highways-partnering contractors, Balfour Beatty – Living Places and Siemens, is expected to take 12 weeks to complete.
There will be no road closures during the work but traffic restrictions will be in place at various points, which may lead to some disruption.
The initial work expected to be undertaken on commencement of the scheme will be the physical removal of the roundabout.
