Drivers in Weybridge were left in gridlock after temporary traffic lights in the town centre failed twice. With a smattering of roadworks on one of Weybridge's busiest roads, seemingly all at the same time, uproar from the town has forced the council to take action.
Apologising for the inconvenience caused, Councillor Tim Oliver, representative for Weybridge and leader of Surrey County Council (SCC), advised drivers that streetworks officers are monitoring the situation. Traffic lights at the SGN gas main replacement works in Balfour Road failed on Monday afternoon (January 27), and again the following morning.
The county council's roadworks map shows three temporary traffic lights at two major points in the town. Traffic lights in Balfour Road and in Church Street for SGN gas works stopped drivers in their tracks, and SCC multi-way signals on Queens Road and St Georges Avenue has slowed traffic down.
There is also a diversion for Devonshire Road which is shut as a result of SGN works, and a selection of works organised by SCC for maintenance. The SCC works includes road marking installations, carriageway resurfacing and footway resurfacing.
Drivers likened navigating Weybridge to entering an obstacle course, saying the town is a no go zone in a private Facebook group. In response, Cllr Oliver addressed concerns and the ongoing situation: "Thank you for flagging the failure of temporary lights in Weybridge.
"To confirm, these temporary signals are managing traffic flows whilst SGN continue gas main replacement works on Balfour Road, Weybridge. To reassure you, our Streetworks Officers are regularly monitoring these works.
"Regrettably, the temporary traffic signals initially broke down late yesterday afternoon and were fixed. They then failed again this morning and were then fixed by 9.50am. We’ve been advised that the problem had been caused by water ingress into the signals control panel but SGN have now changed the signals which should stop this recurring.
"I apologise for any inconvenience and delay this failure may have caused you. Our officers have already asked for some improvements to be made to the current set up and will be revisiting later today to see if anything else needs assessing or improving.
"A safety issue has been noted with regards to motorists queue jumping across the mini roundabout on Church Street, so the positioning of the signal heads may be further adjusted to best prevent this. The SGN work on Balfour Road is due to be completed at the end of this week, with the site continuing into Portmore Park Road. This should relieve traffic on Balfour Road and Church Street.
"Please note the team balance complex factors whilst scheduling works, which often are further complicated if emergency works crop up, or if issues like signal failures occur."
Cllr Oliver directed those with grievances to report future issued to the SCC webpage. When reported online SCC can track an issue, avoid duplication and delay works, you can find the link here.
If you have been impacted by traffic chaos, whether in Weybridge or elsewhere in Surrey, get in contact by emailing [email protected]
