The study of British and Irish roads - their construction, numbering, history, mapping, past and future official roads proposals and general roads musings.
There is a separate forum for Street Furniture (traffic lights, street lights, road signs etc).
Registered users get access to other forums including discussions about other forms of transport, driving, fantasy roads and wishlists, and roads quizzes.
Hdeng16 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 23, 2024 21:20
Absolutely no real connection - other than the poor ground conditions - but the A39 dual carriageway link is closed eastbound at Fraddon. Potentially until mid May due to a ‘depression’ found. Why can’t they just contraflow it - it’s not exactly busy this time of year
I'm not familiar with that road, but to create a contraflow they may well have to remove some central barrier, and surface bits of the central area. That would probably take the best part of a week. If the whole repair is only a few weeks, that doesn't sound like much of an advantage. They might as well just get on with the repairs. Plus there is the extra cost of building the contraflow.
Are there reasonable diversions the traffic can take for a few weeks?
Gaz909909 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 24, 2024 14:29
It's just 3/4 mile dual carriageway, book ended by roundabouts. It could be easily done.
You would still have to remove part of the crash barrier, and build bits of road in the centre to let the traffic cross onto the other carriageway. https://www.google.com/maps/@50.4008317 ... ?entry=ttu
It could be done, but I wouldn't describe it as easy. I would think not easy enough to be justified.
Gaz909909 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 24, 2024 17:51
They can just enter / leave at the roundabouts, with minimal adjustment. Similar to the Chybucca eastbound off ramp at the roundabout.
I think it's time to agree to disagree. I think to make that suitable for all vehicles would take a significant amount of work.
RichardEvans67 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 24, 2024 18:18
I think it's time to agree to disagree. I think to make that suitable for all vehicles would take a significant amount of work.
Usually roads that are not suitable for all vehicles will have a sign that makes it explicit.
It would only be in extremis that a diversion route would use a B road or unclassified road. There is a reason that there is still a sign on the A1 at Buckden that gives advance notice that car transporters are not allowed in Kimbolton.
Here is the sign at the roundabout. https://www.google.com/maps/dir/52.1617 ... &entry=ttu
Gaz909909 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 24, 2024 14:29
It's just 3/4 mile dual carriageway, book ended by roundabouts. It could be easily done.
You would still have to remove part of the crash barrier, and build bits of road in the centre to let the traffic cross onto the other carriageway. https://www.google.com/maps/@50.4008317 ... ?entry=ttu
It could be done, but I wouldn't describe it as easy. I would think not easy enough to be justified.
Good point also this section of the A39 is not trunked and is a Cornwall Council Road. With Highway Budgets stretched and the cost of implementing a contraflow very high they have taken the cost effective traffic management approach, it is only one way and for a short period of time. I would rather they used there budgets on other maintenance schemes then on a contraflow which is not really needed.
Gaz909909 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 24, 2024 14:29
It's just 3/4 mile dual carriageway, book ended by roundabouts. It could be easily done.
You would still have to remove part of the crash barrier, and build bits of road in the centre to let the traffic cross onto the other carriageway. https://www.google.com/maps/@50.4008317 ... ?entry=ttu
It could be done, but I wouldn't describe it as easy. I would think not easy enough to be justified.
Good point also this section of the A39 is not trunked and is a Cornwall Council Road. With Highway Budgets stretched and the cost of implementing a contraflow very high they have taken the cost effective traffic management approach, it is only one way and for a short period of time. I would rather they used there budgets on other maintenance schemes then on a contraflow which is not really needed.
Yeah I was under the mistaken impression it was still trunked - very unlikely for Cornwall Council to do anything other than what they have done unfortunately. Perhaps if the roundabout flares had been used previously for roadworks etc but doesn’t look like they have
I noticed Google Maps has renamed the old A30 as "Rte A30" by Chybucca. Though, bizarrely, the traffic shows green either side of it, but no traffic on "Rte A30".
It's also hard to go back in time to look at parts of the old A30 on GSV. It's a bit of a mess, which I assume won't be properly fixed until the new road is open.
Paul237 wrote: ↑Fri Apr 26, 2024 13:59
I noticed Google Maps has renamed the old A30 as "Rte A30" by Chybucca. Though, bizarrely, the traffic shows green either side of it, but no traffic on "Rte A30".
It's also hard to go back in time to look at parts of the old A30 on GSV. It's a bit of a mess, which I assume won't be properly fixed until the new road is open.
Althought the new road will probably be quickly covered once open and where the old A30 is exatcly where it was in the form of the LAR, they should certainly keep all the old photos from the old road, but you cannot usually look at old layouts where the route has changed/gone. A14 example at Huntingdon. is here. Photo was the oldest one they had at this location. But try clicking forward. Once, twice, gone. So looking back at the old A30 where the carriageway was where the new Chiverton Cross Roundabout is, you probably won't be able to go back through the years. The old truncated bit of the A3075 at Trevissome Park you will be able to see because that has been left, but again not where it has been turned into the new roundabout. It will probably never be possible to click forward from here for example.
Paul237 wrote: ↑Fri Apr 26, 2024 13:59
I noticed Google Maps has renamed the old A30 as "Rte A30" by Chybucca. Though, bizarrely, the traffic shows green either side of it, but no traffic on "Rte A30".
It's also hard to go back in time to look at parts of the old A30 on GSV. It's a bit of a mess, which I assume won't be properly fixed until the new road is open.
Althought the new road will probably be quickly covered once open and where the old A30 is exatcly where it was in the form of the LAR, they should certainly keep all the old photos from the old road, but you cannot usually look at old layouts where the route has changed/gone. A14 example at Huntingdon. is here. Photo was the oldest one they had at this location. But try clicking forward. Once, twice, gone. So looking back at the old A30 where the carriageway was where the new Chiverton Cross Roundabout is, you probably won't be able to go back through the years. The old truncated bit of the A3075 at Trevissome Park you will be able to see because that has been left, but again not where it has been turned into the new roundabout. It will probably never be possible to click forward from here for example.
I get what you're saying and I understand it'd be technically very tricky to include historic photos where road layouts change. But I think it's a bit of a shame to lose a piece of history that way.
Sometimes it's possible to go back in time for small layout changes. For instance, I was looking at one example recently where a crossroads had been turned into a roundabout and it was possible to go back and view the crossroads. It was quite interesting to see how big the change was!
If you have the Google Earth desktop app you can go back as far as 2001 for aerial images, sadly not GSV, but still interesting to go back and look at old layouts.
The old layout at Chiverton from 2001 is quite interesting as it shows separate exits for Blackwater and the B3277 before the small roundabout was built, and also before they added the dedicated westbound on slip from the A390.
adam 1972 wrote: ↑Fri Apr 26, 2024 17:13
If you have the Google Earth desktop app you can go back as far as 2001 for aerial images, sadly not GSV, but still interesting to go back and look at old layouts.
The old layout at Chiverton from 2001 is quite interesting as it shows separate exits for Blackwater and the B3277 before the small roundabout was built, and also before they added the dedicated westbound on slip from the A390.
I’ve spent a few hours looking at historical Google Earth aerial imagery. The old A30 at Temple, Bodmin-Indian Queens, Merrymeet/Whiddon Down roundabout, A38 pre Dobwalls Bypass and the old A39 at Devoran all visible.
techdan2002 wrote: ↑Wed May 01, 2024 23:25
I’ve spent a few hours looking at historical Google Earth aerial imagery. The old A30 at Temple, Bodmin-Indian Queens, Merrymeet/Whiddon Down roundabout, A38 pre Dobwalls Bypass and the old A39 at Devoran all visible.
I find on google earth I can usually get back to around about the year 2000. Earlier than that, is usually very poor quality pictures. For some reason the year 1985 is often available with terrible resolution.
techdan2002 wrote: ↑Wed May 01, 2024 23:25
I’ve spent a few hours looking at historical Google Earth aerial imagery. The old A30 at Temple, Bodmin-Indian Queens, Merrymeet/Whiddon Down roundabout, A38 pre Dobwalls Bypass and the old A39 at Devoran all visible.
I find on google earth I can usually get back to around about the year 2000. Earlier than that, is usually very poor quality pictures. For some reason the year 1985 is often available with terrible resolution.
Take a look at Kent - couple of awesome pre-2000 options there
RichardEvans67 wrote: ↑Thu May 02, 2024 00:25
I find on google earth I can usually get back to around about the year 2000. Earlier than that, is usually very poor quality pictures. For some reason the year 1985 is often available with terrible resolution.
Yep 1985 is available in Cornwall, but it is such a shame about the dreadful resolution.
Would have been so interesting to see Chiverton Cross, and the old Scorrier layout pre- Blackwater bypass, which i do have vague memories of, and also Carland Cross before the Trispen and Summercourt bypasses.
I do remember chivvy being a much smaller roundabout & Scorrier being a strange sort of partial GSJ, and the old EB off slip, which used to be on the other side of the bridge being used as a temporary S1 whilst the Blackwater bypass was under construction