A1 southbound slip road at Letchworth

[Grandad Gaz]

Any idea as to why part of this has been closed for several weeks now?

It's not possible to access A1 south from Letchworth. You have to head towards Baldock on the bypass, go right around the roundabout and come back again. I know it's not much of a diversion, but it all adds up over time!

[Spindoctor]

I'd like to know as well. I don't mind them closing it if they need to do some work on it but its been coned off and completely untouched for all this time - no sign of a man with a shovel.

While I'm at it, when are they going to re-surface Letchworth Gate between the A1 roundabout and the Shell garage? It is literally falling apart, with major potholes and bodged attempts to patch it up that have just made it worse. Must be a candidate for the worst road in Herts.

[Speed_Demon]

Spindoctor said:

I'd like to know as well. I don't mind them closing it if they need to do some work on it but its been coned off and completely untouched for all this time - no sign of a man with a shovel.

While I'm at it, when are they going to re-surface Letchworth Gate between the A1 roundabout and the Shell garage? It is literally falling apart, with major potholes and bodged attempts to patch it up that have just made it worse. Must be a candidate for the worst road in Herts.

Letchworth gate is pretty bad, but is trumped by Icknield way toward Hitchin, it is just a joke. If I wanted to be jostled around that much I'd crawl inside a washing machine.

[Bri957]

A couple of crashes, right at the start of the slip road have damaged the barrier.

I wish they would sort the whole roundabout out, it's really badly designed and always flooded in the slightest bit of rain.

[vankypanky]

there were more than that as regards accidents. almost nightly. i had mine sideways there as well and blocked the road. bit scary to say the least. i think there is something wrong with the tarmac possibly a spill but it has eaten away any grip and even a light rainfall makes it a skid pan and you dont need to be going that fast.
i think they are waiting for a team to do the work or a budget but in the meantime they have done the sensible thing.
the last one hit the barrier came back out and collected someone coming from the baldock slip. very messy. i think that was the third that week then the following day it was shut.

[Spindoctor]

I've seen several near misses as a result of the closure - drivers swapping lanes on the roundabout when they see the cones. Sensible to close it but even more sensible to get it repaired and open again quickly, especially with full-on rush hour traffic resuming tomorrow.

[supermono]

Spindoctor said:

I've seen several near misses as a result of the closure - drivers swapping lanes on the roundabout when they see the cones. Sensible to close it but even more sensible to get it repaired and open again quickly, especially with full-on rush hour traffic resuming tomorrow.

Couldn't have said it better. I've often factored in a bit of a slide on that skidpan exit there and noticed the damaged barrier more than once.

If you exit the A1(M) on the 414 West, there's a roundabout some way along there with a similar exit sharpish left hander which had skidpan characteristics and regular barrier damage. There they've dressed it with some high grip surface and even though it finishes about 20 metres too early, it's still useful.

On the sliproad in question, there's a good amount of high grip on the left dedicated bit, hardly rocket science to put some on the rest of the road.

SM

[C.A.R.]

That whole roundabout is a crap design, but I wondered what the cones were for too.

Coming off the A1 heading into Letchworth is dangerous, as the traffic you are supposed to give way to after using the left-only filter lane is completely obscured from view / right in your blind spot! What genius designed that?!

[Hudson]

C.A.R. said:

That whole roundabout is a crap design, but I wondered what the cones were for too.

Coming off the A1 heading into Letchworth is dangerous, as the traffic you are supposed to give way to after using the left-only filter lane is completely obscured from view / right in your blind spot! What genius designed that?!

It is pretty crap, the best approach seems to be check for traffic as soon as you enter the slip lane, and if its clear, boot it

[Perik Omo]

I had reasons to visit Letchworth from France at the start of December and was staying up near Biggleswade. On three of the five occasions that I went into Letchworth I saw an accident at the top of that northbound slip road into Letchworth as I was coming around the roundabout from the A1M (coming from Biggleswade), this was at various times of day so I assume there an awful lot of accidents there or was it just coincidence!

[Spindoctor]

No coincidence. I've seen accidents there and it's been the subject of local concern ever since it was redesigned. Even the police have described it as a flawed junction. In their infinite wisdom, the Highways Agency have decided to leave it as it is.

[Boydie88]

C.A.R. said:

That whole roundabout is a crap design, but I wondered what the cones were for too.

Coming off the A1 heading into Letchworth is dangerous, as the traffic you are supposed to give way to after using the left-only filter lane is completely obscured from view / right in your blind spot! What genius designed that?!

Made worse by the people that for your reason above or just stupidty, turn left from the right lanes.

[Dblue]

Boydie88 said:

C.A.R. said:

That whole roundabout is a crap design, but I wondered what the cones were for too.

Coming off the A1 heading into Letchworth is dangerous, as the traffic you are supposed to give way to after using the left-only filter lane is completely obscured from view / right in your blind spot! What genius designed that?!

Made worse by the people that for your reason above or just stupidty, turn left from the right lanes.

It's nothing to do with stupidity or flawed judgement, just base cunning. When it's busy it's faster to not use the filter , stop at the lights then just turn left when you go through. Not very ethical but what do you expect? Every man/woman for themselves as usual.

[theleader]

I use that roundabout every day and the closure has been confusing me. I'm surprised that so many accidents have happened there because I haven't been able to figure out how you could have an accident and end up in the barrier. It can only be people coming from Letchworth, but too much speed around the roundabout would mean you'd end up heading towards the filter lane coming from Baldock. So it must be the small left kink as you join the slip road?

I've never seen an accident there, but based on the replies here I do understand why it's closed now.

[Dblue]

theleader said:

I use that roundabout every day and the closure has been confusing me. I'm surprised that so many accidents have happened there because I haven't been able to figure out how you could have an accident and end up in the barrier. It can only be people coming from Letchworth, but too much speed around the roundabout would mean you'd end up heading towards the filter lane coming from Baldock. So it must be the small left kink as you join the slip road?

I've never seen an accident there, but based on the replies here I do understand why it's closed now.

+1 On this.

How do you screw that up? Unless you are really trying round the roundabout I'm not sure exactly how you can lose it into the barrier on the inside.

Could it be drivers coming from the by-pass and missing the filter lane then trying to get across and down the slip?

Edited by Dblue on Thursday 10th January 15:01

[C.A.R.]

It's not always easy to see the filter lane from the roundabout, particularly when it's raining. I'd wager it's more likely people come around the roundabout and go to use the slip road and pull into the left too early, missing the filter lane. Or people trying to exit the roundabout onto the sliproad whilst two a-breast...

[Grandad Gaz]

Have you seen the queues from Gravely as cars try to join the dual carriageway at Letchworth Gate during rush hour?

That used to be a bit of a rat run to avoid the motorway. Not anymore! Not since that slip road has been closed.

[Spindoctor]

Have they started work on the slip road yet?

[theleader]

Spindoctor said:

Have they started work on the slip road yet?

From the story in the local paper, they didn't have a plan to do anything, just to close it until they figured out what to do...

All the extra traffic heading towards Baldock and back means that there's now often a queue halfway up the hill on the Baldock bypass. That was a nice surprise in the thick fog this morning.

[Grandad Gaz]

A couple of angry letters in this weeks Comet about this.

According to Highways Agency it will be closed until May!!

http://www.thecomet.net/comet-life/letters/letters...