A new £4.7m roundabout has opened to traffic in Brough designed to improve the congested junction for years to come.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council has constructed a new three-arm roundabout in the town to replace the previous busy junction at Welton Road, Welton Low Road, Water Lane and the A63. Work on the major scheme has taken 16 months and is now open to drivers. Council contractors are now adding the finishing touches.
The project has been entirely funded by the Brough South Consortium, as part of a planning condition to cope with the increased traffic generated by the building of hundreds of new houses and businesses on the Brough South Development. The roundabout is designed to improve the capacity of the junction by around 25% and reduce frustrating traffic queues and delays, especially during rush hours.
Newly installed traffic lights – soon to be switched on – are fitted with queue detection equipment designed to manage traffic flows at all times of the day, particularly to and from the Hull direction. Work to be carried out over the next two weeks includes installing fencing and pedestrian guardrails, more signs and lighting columns.
Landscaping and planting on the site will continue over the winter. As part of the scheme, a new footpath and cycle path have been created to give people a more direct and safer route to South Hunsley School from Brough. New toucan and puffin crossings are also included to allow for easier pedestrian crossings.
These paths are still to be resurfaced in the next couple of weeks before opening to the public. Much of the work carried out throughout the scheme was done off the existing roads, and some overnight, so as not to disrupt traffic.
The work was carried out on behalf of the council by local contractors PBS Construction (North East) Ltd. Councillor Nigel Wilkinson, the council’s cabinet member for finance and governance, said: “This is a significant investment by the Brough South Consortium, and I’m extremely pleased we’ve been able to deliver this new roundabout for the benefit of drivers who have suffered severe delays in the past.
“This roundabout has been built to cope with the increase in traffic and to help to open up this area for new housing, industry and jobs.
“The new paths and crossings we’ve created will also give pedestrians and schoolchildren a much safer route to and from the school.”
Ian Hodges, director of Horncastle Group PLC representing the Brough South Consortium, said: “A major overhaul of the A63 Brough/Elloughton/Welton junction has always been planned as part of the Brough South development to ensure the local road infrastructure is able to accommodate the extra traffic the scheme and other developments completed in recent years have created.
“We are delighted we have been able to deliver the improvement several years ahead of the requirements in the planning permission and wish to thank East Riding of Yorkshire Council for its help with the project.
“The council designed the scheme and supervised its delivery by PBS Construction. We would also like to thank residents for their patience and understanding during the works.”
Glenn Smurthwaite, managing director of PBS Construction (North East) Ltd, said: “We are very pleased to be involved in such a high-profile project with ourselves being a local company.
“To see the transformation and the impact it has had in making the access/egress to Brough a much more enjoyable experience for the general public is very pleasing as it has generated a lot of positive feedback for all involved in the construction of the scheme.”
