LONG-SUFFERING Pershore motorists will face 10 days of diversions as under-pressure developers Persimmon Homes complete controversial highway work on Station Road and Wyre Road.
The long-running saga will come to an end as traffic lights are completed at the busy junction but will see a nine-mile diversion imposed on drivers using one of the town’s busiest roads.
Motorists travelling south will be sent to the A44 to Egdon, then the B4084 Egdon Lane and B4084 Worcester Lane through Drakes Broughton with the reverse in place for northbound traffic.
Drivers are currently held up at the junction at Station Road by temporary traffic lights which have caused extra delays for commuters.
Efforts by local residents to demand a roundabout be built at the junction were rebuffed by county council highways chiefs at the end of 2017.
But despite the thumbs down, town councillors requested the detailed technical reason why a roundabout would not fit at the junction, irrespective of services running through the site and land ownership.
Highways chiefs said a standard sized roundabout was unsuitable as it would require land outside the council’s control to make it possible and would be significantly more expensive to implement.
The work has been delayed to enable other essential highway works to be completed but Persimmon Homes has now agreed a scheduled completion date for the scheme for the first week in May.
Paul Lappin, technical manager at Persimmon Homes South Midlands, said: “We apologise for the temporary inconvenience with the road closure, but endeavour to complete the works with the least possible disruption and thank residents for their cooperation.
“The resurfacing of the junction and the installation of the permanent traffic signals will require the closure of the Station Road/ Wyre Road until April 28.
“While the junction will be closed to through traffic, access to frontages and properties within the Wyre Meadows development will be maintained at all times,” he added.
Visit www.roadworks.org for more on the diversion.
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