New A140 safety plea

A POLITICIAN is calling for urgent action to improve a stretch of the A140 Norwich to Ipswich road that has been the scene of a series of accidents.

A POLITICIAN is calling for urgent action to improve a stretch of the A140 Norwich to Ipswich road that has been the scene of a series of accidents.

Earlier this month the main road was closed at Brome after a car and an articulated lorry were in collision, and residents say there are numerous near-misses that go unreported.

Now, campaigner Andrew Aalders-Dunthorne, Liberal Democrat parliamentary spokesman for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, has launched a petition calling for an urgent review of the junction.

He said: "This accident is in addition to the further one serious accident and three shunts that have happened recently. Anyone who has used this busy junction knows this is just the tip of the iceberg, with literally dozens of near-misses happening regularly, which are never recorded. An average of eight people are injured every single day on the county's roads.

Mr Aalders-Dunthorne said the recent opening of the new roundabout at the Pulham crossroads would improve road safety markedly at another busy junction on the A140.

"The local community fought long and hard for this vital safety improve-ment, which is already proving to be a great success, and is potentially saving lives," he added. "The Brome junction (A140/B1077) is on the radar of Suffolk County Council, but I want it to be a real priority. We need a roundabout to manage traffic in this area, not another speed camera."

Charles Flatman, the Mid Suffolk district councillor who represents Eye, said this part of the A140 could have very heavy traffic early in the morning. But he said he was not sure a roundabout would be the best way forward and he believed accidents could be avoided by motorists

simply driving more carefully.

Guy McGregor, portfolio holder for roads and transport at Suffolk County Council, said: "I know the Brome junction very well, and certainly at times it is very busy. Safety is a prime consideration for many people, and we have done our absolute best. but it would be fruitless to work up a specialised scheme for this particular location."

He added: "It would be very unlikely, almost impossible, for the county council to spend money to justify this when the government would not even approve it anyway."