AN accident blackspot on the A574 at Warrington has been made safer thanks to the installation of environmentally friendly green screens.
The 6ft screens have been installed on the approach to the roundabout at the junction of Birchwood Way and Woolston 
Grange Avenue to make it safer by ensuring vehicles must slow down when coming to the roundabout.
Prior to the instalment of the green screens a number of collisions took place owing to motorists approaching this large roundabout too quickly and confidently because of the broad view they had.
The green screens, which are essentially wire fencing covered with ivy, serve to obstruct the view of the roundabout as motorists approach, encouraging them to slow down. This technique is becoming an increasingly commonplace and effective way of reducing collisions at similar locations across the UK.
Cllr Linda Dirir (pictured) , the borough council’s executive member for highways, transportation and climate change, said: “Warrington Borough Council chose the green screens over traditional wooden fencing or walling because the screens offer environmental benefits and require minimal maintenance.
“We are committed to improving road safety, but are also very conscious of the need to do so with sustainability in mind and the screens provide the perfect solution. Most importantly they should help significantly reduce the number of collisions at this roundabout.”
Green screens make junction safer
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Gary Skentelbery
Experienced journalist for more than 40 years. Managing Director of magazine publishing group with three in-house titles and on-line daily newspaper for Warrington. Experienced writer, photographer, PR consultant and media expert having written for local, regional and national newspapers. Specialties: PR, media, social networking, photographer, networking, advertising, sales, media crisis management. Chair of Warrington Healthwatch Director Warrington Chamber of Commerce Patron Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace. Trustee Warrington Disability Partnership. Former Chairman of Warrington Town FC.
9 Comments
I think you will find there will be more accidents due to people slamming on their brakes near the end and people crashing at the back of them. They look ridiculous too.
Best laugh I’ve had – just waiting on Tarzan and Jane to jump out
As the old saying goes. Sounds crazy but it just might work!
The simple ideas are usually the best and most cost effective and if accidents are reduced, I call that a result!
Well done WBC.
If they make drivers slow down that’s a positive result. The Council also needs to look at what can be done to increase safety for drivers attempting to exit Fearnhead Lane onto Crab Lane – a lot of drivers coming from the island forget they’ve got indicators (and brakes) – the speed of a lot of the traffic around the island is ridiculous. As for pedestrians and cyclists trying to cross Crab Lane to access Fearnhead Lane – well – they take their life in their hands……
saw them today and they make a lot of sense- seen too many near misses there over the years..
What a total waste of money because the screens do not continue to the end of the road junction to slow traffic down. Secondly, you can see through them. Thirdly, they are dying. Lastly, they make the area look like a “suburb of Beirut”. We have to live in the area and these cheap gimmicks do nothing for road safety! The roads that need action are the junction of Fearnhead Lane and Crab Lane where the Council have taken no action.
I couldn’t agree more.
I couldn’t quite see as I drove past recently, but I got the impression that the screens were covered in artificial ivy. If they’ve planted real ivy, then it’s bound to die back for a while before taking root. Will it work? Well it’ll slow the traffic down, which may or may not reduce the accidents but at least if they do still happen then maybe they won’t be quite as bad.
The irony here is that if you look at the spacing of the roads and the unique oval shape of the island then it appears it’s been designed so as not to impede to the traffic to flow and now we’re deliberately introducing measures to do just that. It’d be nice to think there was some way in which we could penalise just the idiot drivers but as usual, the sensible majorities are inconvenienced on account of a few idiots.
As for Fearnhead Lane, to me that’s no different than any other junction where a slow residential road meets up with a main commuter road. People just need to take care when exiting junctions like this especially as you say when people sometimes forget to indicate. There has to be a limit though on where it’s reasonable to expect the council to take action bearing in mind the council doesn’t create the accidents.