CHANGES have been made to a lane closure in Worcester which was causing “traffic chaos.”

Following city councillor Richard Udall’s complaint to Worcestershire County Council over roadworks taking place in the heart of St John’s and on Sabrina Bridge, the council has made changes to the Hylton Road lane closure to “improve traffic flow.”

Cllr Udall says drivers have been left frustrated after experiencing heavy traffic queues.

The following actions have been agreed by the council: Traffic lights will be controlled manually not automatically on Hylton Road, a person will change the lights to allow traffic to flow better. Manually deal with cars leaving the trading estate opposite Sabrina Bridge, giving them less green time. Guide pedestrians during the daytime to take out the current temporary pedestrian phase to give more green time to cars (this will revert to signals at night). The council will share more social media messages to advise motorists of route options and remind them that Henwick Road is now open as an alternative. Introduce signage at Holt Heath to encourage southbound traffic to take alternative routes.

Cllr Udall said: “We will have to see if the changes they have introduced are good enough, personally I have my doubts. The simple fact is that a road on a main diversion route is being obstructed by a new road closure. The timing is atrocious, it simply has not been thought out or planned properly."

“I will continue to monitor the situation, but I believe local residents deserve an apology and an admission that the timing was a mistake.

“We all know the work needs to be done on the bridge, but the poor timing has caused a double whammy of congestion which cannot be overcome with moderate manual changes to traffic lights.

“I still believe the work needs to suspended until the roadworks in St John’s have been completed.

“To add insult to injury, local businesses on Hylton Road are also now suffering, unable to get deliveries or to dispatch goods, customers are facing long tail backs to use their services, some may go elsewhere as a result.

“These are not petty or small concerns, the County Council by their ineptitude have effectively closed St John’s for businesses. It’s not good enough.”

A spokesman for the council said: “The works at St John’s and those on Sabrina Bridge are extremely important schemes for Worcester and they both need to be completed as soon as possible. We are continually reviewing the traffic management measures put in place to facilitate both schemes, with a view to getting the best flow of traffic through the area some changes have been implemented today. We will also be providing further information to motorists to ensure they are aware of alternative routes.”