Vine Island Junction
Vine Island | |||
Location Map ( geo) | |||
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Location | |||
Fordhouses, Wolverhampton | |||
County | |||
Staffordshire | |||
Highway Authority | |||
Wolverhampton | |||
Junction Type | |||
Roundabout | |||
Roads Joined | |||
A449 • U119 | |||
Vine Island Junction is a roundabout junction located on the A449 in Fordhouses on the northern side of Wolverhampton. It replaced a staggered junction, and so until 2013 had a very odd lozenge shape which was generally unfamiliar to drivers. It has now been replaced by a more standard shape.
The route to the west is the Class III U119, forming a major access to the mostly aerospace-based industrial area including the i54 Business Park and the suburb of Pendeford. It also forms the only constructed part of the Wolverhampton Outer Ring Road.
The junction is named after the public house that formerly stood in the northeast corner of the junction, though this was replaced by flats in the late 1990s.
The junction was earmarked for a major improvement and conversion from a roundabout to a light-controlled crossroads in 2012, but it was reported in September 2011 that the funding provision had been withdrawn. However, local residents were appraised in October 2011 about a redesigned scheme which would create a larger roundabout slightly to the north of the existing junction, and would remove Bee Lane from the junction proper. Work started in October 2012 on the redesigned roundabout scheme, with a major temporary layout being in use from mid-May 2013. The work was completed in December 2013, with work immediately starting on the widening of Wobaston Road to the west.
In the southwest corner of the roundabout are some parking spaces for the retail premises located there. Before the 2013 changes, access to the parking spaces was directly from the roundabout, and leaving the spaces involved reversing into the circulatory carriageway, a task that was not for the faint-hearted. During the reconstruction, a separate service road and parking area was completed.
Routes
Route | To | Notes |
Stafford, M54, M6 | ||
City Centre | ||
Bee Lane | Removed from junction in 2013 | |
Pendeford, Codsall |
Links
- Wolverhampton City Council improvement scheme
- Wolverhampton City Council roadworks
- Express and Star report on cancellation of junction improvements
- i54 South Staffordshire