A140

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signol
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A140

Post by signol »

The Long Stratton bypass in Norfolk recently given the go-ahead:
http://www.norfolk.gov.uk/consumption/i ... odeId=3485

This brings up the different road strategies of the two counties the road passes through, Norfolk and Suffolk.

The A140 from the A14 to the Scole bypass on the county border, ie. the Suffolk section, has no bypasses and no an inch of NSL, including a couple of miles of dual carriageway. And recently, the low speed limits were decreased even further - the majority of rural S2 is now 40mph.

Norfolk section is predominately NSL, with bypasses for Scole (D2) and Dickleburgh (S2), NSL between towns, and the aforementioned D2 bypass about to be built.

Contrasting policies for neighbouring counties on the same road!

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Truvelo
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Post by Truvelo »

This is the most obvious drawback of detrunking. Under the HA this road would be treated as a complete section from Norwich to the A14 and could well be upgrade to D2 in its entirety.
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Post by doebag »

Wondering if the two differing attitudes to speed limits are reflected in differing accident statistics?
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A303Chris
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Re: A140

Post by A303Chris »

I thought I would bump this post from 16 years ago to say that the Government has committed £26.2 million to the Long Stratton Bypass

Yipee you go until you read the blurb and it will be 2.5 miles long, single carriageway with 3 roundabouts and subject to a 50/60 mph limit.

The nearest you'll get to a plan is Figure 1.4 of the outline business case part of Norfolk's submission to the DfT and you'll see basically it becomes new eastern edge of the village which will be infilled with development.

There does not seem to be any over taking lanes, at least the Welsh get this!!!!, if you build a bypass especially on a route with restricted over taking opportunities , do provide some.

Norfolk's scheme page is here

So basically it is a housing distribution road. What a disappointment
Last edited by A303Chris on Mon Jul 26, 2021 13:37, edited 1 time in total.
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Bryn666
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Re: A140

Post by Bryn666 »

A303Chris wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 11:01 I thought I would bump this post for 16 years ago to say that the Government has committed £26.2 million to the Long Stratton Bypass

Yipee you go until you read the blurb and it will be 2.5 miles long, single carriageway with 3 roundabouts and subject to a 50/60 mph limit.

The nearest you'll get to a plan is Figure 1.4 of the outline business case part of Norfolk's submission to the DfT and you'll see basically it becomes new eastern edge of the village which will be infilled with development.

There does not seem to be any over taking lanes, at least the Welsh get this!!!!, if you build a bypass especially on a route with restricted over taking opportunities , do provide some.

Norfolk's scheme page is here

So basically it is a housing distribution road. What a disappointment
We don't build bypasses, we build development corridors. It's like the 1936 Ribbon Development Act never happened.
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skiddaw05
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Re: A140

Post by skiddaw05 »

Bryn666 wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 12:37
A303Chris wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 11:01 I thought I would bump this post for 16 years ago to say that the Government has committed £26.2 million to the Long Stratton Bypass

Yipee you go until you read the blurb and it will be 2.5 miles long, single carriageway with 3 roundabouts and subject to a 50/60 mph limit.

The nearest you'll get to a plan is Figure 1.4 of the outline business case part of Norfolk's submission to the DfT and you'll see basically it becomes new eastern edge of the village which will be infilled with development.

There does not seem to be any over taking lanes, at least the Welsh get this!!!!, if you build a bypass especially on a route with restricted over taking opportunities , do provide some.

Norfolk's scheme page is here

So basically it is a housing distribution road. What a disappointment
We don't build bypasses, we build development corridors. It's like the 1936 Ribbon Development Act never happened.
At least it won't be a disappointment to Long Stratton residents. Relief for residents has been a major selling point for this scheme, rather than it being part of any long term objectives to upgrade the whole of the A140. And judging by traffic conditions elsewhere on the (S2) A140 it will still be a good deal better than the current situation through the middle of Long Stratton so bring the thing on I'd say. Had it been a requirement that it had to be D2 it would probably never get built at all
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jackal
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Re: A140

Post by jackal »

The bypass is very welcome, and I'm not even that bothered about the roundabouts - you'll almost always have two terminal roundabouts so it's close to the minimum. But I do suspect that it should be dualled as the nearest count point is 23k AADT.
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Re: A140

Post by WHBM »

The difficulty with avoiding roundabouts is that, while there is passing traffic relief for the villagers, it can now be very challenging, if not dangerous, for the villagers to exit if turning right onto a new high speed main road. I have come across this elsewhere where the rural bus continues to serve the village, but having got just one, or often none, passengers, then finds a lengthy wait to rejoin the main road, to the extent of slowing the service down.
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Re: A140

Post by Truvelo »

I do agree with WHBM's comments about the dangers and frustration of wanting to turn right onto a busy road and waiting for a gap in the traffic that never appears. However, one centrally located roundabout is all that's needed for villagers to turn right safely. Sure, it may be a longer journey if you live some distance from the roundabout but at least it will inconvenience 23k drivers less than the few hundred villagers. Obviously there could be some additional LILO junctions along the bypass such as where the existing road through the village meets the bypass at each end.
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SteveA30
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Re: A140

Post by SteveA30 »

For smaller settlements, there is no need for full access at both ends. There is no reason for anyone to turn right at the furthest end of the bypass into the village when they could have done so at the other end. Likewise, there is no need for anyone to turn right onto the bypass at the start, when they could at the other end, in the direction they are already heading. So, those rt. turns can be banned, reducing conflicts and danger. If there is a crossroads half way along, this could be a staggered junction with refuges, left then right, not right then left, which has more conflict and danger built in.

A47 Thorney is the most ridiculously overprovided bypass, a D2 with 3 rbts when only the central one is necessary, for the reasons just mentioned (although a GSJ would be even better). The other 2 could be slip rd style, exit only at one end and entry only at the other, removing two movements from the rbt.
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ais523
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Re: A140

Post by ais523 »

SteveA30 wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 21:17A47 Thorney is the most ridiculously overprovided bypass, a D2 with 3 rbts when only the central one is necessary, for the reasons just mentioned (although a GSJ would be even better). The other 2 could be slip rd style, exit only at one end and entry only at the other, removing two movements from the rbt.
Wouldn't building a fork junction, rather than a roundabout, require a bridge, though? I assumed a roundabout was used because it was cheaper than a fork, not as a method of providing full access.

Additionally, there's a need to avoid breaking the B1167; it might make sense to restrict the turnings at the west end at the bypass, but at the east, there are multiple roads involved.
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Re: A140

Post by SteveA30 »

Yes, I'd forgotten that the east end rbt was a crossroads. However, there is a lane called English Drove that runs direct to the central rbt. The traffic map 5 minutes ago showed green lines along it and grey on the B1167, indicating it is the preferred route locally. So, the old A47 becomes an off slip and the B1167 is a LILO, with a short central reservation, like the one at Chippenham bypass called either Cepen North or South.
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Micro The Maniac
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Re: A140

Post by Micro The Maniac »

WHBM wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 15:30 The difficulty with avoiding roundabouts is that, while there is passing traffic relief for the villagers, it can now be very challenging, if not dangerous, for the villagers to exit if turning right onto a new high speed main road.
Indeed... this happened with the Easingwold (A19) bypass in Yorkshire. The bypass was built as an NSL/S2 with only the southern tie-in having a roundabout.

Several fatal incidents later, and the northern tie-in was roundabout-ed.
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Re: A140

Post by thatapanydude »

Common sense ought to have seen some S2+1 or small D2 just after the roundabouts to allow for quick overtaking when slow traffic is at their slowest.
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Jim606
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Re: A140

Post by Jim606 »

The A140 Long Stratton bypass has been in the news again...
https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest ... 6-09-2022/

Long-awaited Norfolk bypass delayed as costs soar
06 SEP, 2022 BY THOMAS JOHNSON

The long-anticipated Long Stratton Bypass in Norfolk has run into another hurdle with estimated costs up £8.8M. Despite the cost hike on the project, South Norfolk District Council is adamant that the project be completed. However, the council has conceded that construction will be delayed by a year while additional funding is sourced.

Plans for the village bypass in Norfolk were first discussed 70 years ago. After many false starts the council is keen to ensure the project is progressed this time around. The Long Stratton Bypass, which will allow drivers to reach the A140 without having to pass through the village, has seen its projected costs rise to £46.2M from the original £37.4M. This 23.5% rise in cost is mainly due to the pandemic and the Ukraine war driving up material and labour prices across the globe.

South Norfolk district councillor Alison Thomas, who has first campaigned for the bypass in 1997, said: “Losing it at this stage would be devastating. The cost of tarmac and the other materials has been rising, we knew that. “It’s fair to say this is our best chance and we’ve come a long way in recent years. The outcome is looking much more positive even with these cost rises so we must continue.”

A contractor for the project to build a 4km single carriageway road, starting on the east side of Long Stratton and re-joining the existing road just south of Oakside farm, is yet to be decided. Norfolk County Council had already secured £26.2M from the Department for Transport for the project but Thomas has said it will now apply for more before trying to “locally source the shortfall”. While the council had hoped work on the bypass would start by summer 2023, Thomas confirmed they will be delayed by at least a year with plans now looking for the road to be finished by the end of 2025.

Norfolk County Council cabinet member for highways, infrastructure and transport Martin Wilby said: “The issues we face are not unique to our County. The impact of planning delays and inflation cost pressures are being felt across the whole country and beyond, particularly in the construction sector and are broadly inline with the increases we have seen .“We remain fully committed to overcoming these obstacles and are seeking to put ourselves in the strongest position possible to move forward at pace as soon as we are able to make this project a reality for the people of Norfolk.” The news comes as the Local Government Association recently revealed the costs of building and maintaining roads was heavily affecting council funds across the country.

As previously reported by NCE, inflationary cost rises are already starting to impact ongoing road building projects with a trio of road schemes put on ice in the past month due to rising material, labour and energy prices.
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Re: A140

Post by roadphotos »

How on earth can the Long Stratton By-Pass have been given the go ahead in 2005 but still hasn't started construction ?
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Re: A140

Post by wrinkly »

roadphotos wrote: Sun Sep 11, 2022 17:23 How on earth can the Long Stratton By-Pass have been given the go ahead in 2005 but still hasn't started construction ?
"Given the go-ahead" is a vague phrase with many meanings, some of which can later be reversed.
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