The junction from the Morland Gardens development to the Drayton Road has taken shape over the last few weeks (this is the controversial development of 158 dwellings in a field just south of Abingdon). Posts for traffic lights have been erected, and utilities have been connected. The new dropped curbs currently go nowhere,
but soon they will take people to the new bus lay-by towards Abingdon and Oxford.
The view from the twin towns estate has changed with tree tops being replaced by roof tops. The rusting museum piece vehicles that block up Lucca Drive will NOT (correction after comments) one day give way to a path for pedestrians and cycles.
All being well these new lights will bring welcome relief and vindication for the con-sultants and councillors who have been tasked with remedying the traffic woes of south Abingdon, the double roundabouts, and the iron bridge to the wharf. Now all the traffic can be held at these lights and the queue moved half a mile back. Job done!
Are the new houses still all getting £150 towards bicycles, to fix that problem too?
This way of dealing with problems is actually very good – no wonder my six yr old uses it.
Oh great. The traffic has to be further held up for the sake of expensive housing. When all the traffic joins the Drayton Road from the completed Morland gardens and the other developments in Drayton it will take ages to get down t he Drayton Road. I do hope that the buses actually do go into the layby and not block the traffic coming down the Drayton Road. The traffic in Abingdon is being screwed even further.
Backstreeter – is that right about the footpath through from Lucca Drive? When the development was first proposed, many people suggested it but the developers flatly refused. Although I appreciate that Lucca Drive residents might not welcome it, it should make a big difference to the ability of families and especially children from the new estate to have safe access to schools, leisure areas EC. Is this a rare example of lobbying succeeding?
I’ve only driven past here once since these works have been undertaken but I’m fairly certain the bus stop is on the main road with no layby. The layby in the picture is for maintenance vehicles I believe (it is standard to ensure there is somewhere to park a maintenance vehicle when installing traffic lights).
Let’s hope so Hester – but to be more accurate; safe access to oversubscribed schools, over subscribed leisure areas, creaking infrastructure and inadequate services….
It took 17 minutes to get from Caldecott Rd to the double roundabouts yesterday – noon on a Sunday…
Taylor Wimpey will be building a 6ft high wall before the end of October with no pedestrian access to Lucca Drive, this will replace the 8 ft high 30 year old hedgerow that was removed.
The lay by looks badly designed, to small and difficult to enter and exit.
Dave, the very best urban and road planners were tasked with this. Unfortunately they weren’t available… Let’s hope the ex-sperts who *were* available get it right….
Definition of ‘Expert’.
Ex = x = sign for unknown quantity.
Spert = spurt = a drip under pressure.
I think people have had quite enough of experts.
(c) M Gove 2016
I believe most of these smaller developments have fewer houses than necessitate them to contribute to local infrastructure in which case Abingdon will die the death of a thousand cuts.
I was really annoyed (though not surprised) to see that the unitary council project seems to have been kicked into touch. I suppose none of the turkeys running The Vale are going to vote for Christmas. It’s so depressing to be saddled with these party political inadequates.
And … Nimmo-Smith strikes again … in Freidswide Square … the man’s got a genius for incompetence.
11 newcomer – on unitary authority – for once i agree with you
5 daniel – on the schools in relation to this development you are incorrect – the south abingdon schools are not over subscribed – you are getting confused with the north abingdon primaries which are indeed oversubscribed and will have potential problems with the dunmore development although i believe there is a new primary school factored in to those plans
Thanks Iain. Whilst you may be ‘correct’ in what you say, and I absolutely do not doubt that some inspector, or date I say consultant or even ex-spurt can tick a box or some imposed target that does or doesn’t render a school ‘oversubscribed’, the reality… the common sense and the experience counters those policy protagonists
I have two children in one of the south Abingdon schools, I think they flick between “over subscribed” and “under”. Today they may well be “under”. Meanwhile, children are in classes that are ‘too large’ (but conveniently within some policy limit), despite the best efforts of the wonderful teachers and staff the quality of education can only suffer by such large numbers. Teaching assistants carry out far more duties than they should – and do so brilliantly, but they are not qualified teachers. The school is going through a ‘doubling’ of intake which is working its way through the school – but I am not aware of a larger play ground, or more classrooms…or even a few more coat pegs. Holiday clubs are closing because there’s not enough funding. The PTA needs to subsidise trips etc.
Squeeze ’em in one end….and plop them out the other.
The ticket box might say “under subscribed’ but I have a feeling we will reap the rewards (if we aren’t already) by tick-box teaching, rather than education.
Granted, these aren’t Abingdon only issues, and of course, it’s even less of an issue to address our get on the way of a profitable housing development… Let’s not allow our children’s education get in the way of anyone’s bottom line.
But you are correct, currently there is plenty more room for more children at the southern schools.
….not doubling. Was a class and a half…now increased to two full classes of 30.
A unitary council has obvious advantages, Iain, for those without interests invested in the current useless arrangement.
As for the Guildhall … I’ve been worn down and have given up. The whole project continues to be a mess and it is a real indictment that the public are now being asked for ideas when such a lot of money has been wasted. A while back I posted here that proper research on the viable future function(s) of the building should have been done before a penny was spent on even thinking about the building work. This is not an original idea.
‘Form Follows Function’ is an established architectural approach and we really needed to know what functions the ‘unique design’ of the Guildhall could possibly accommodate within budget. Unfortunately, given the current structure and modest budget the ‘Form’ of the building restricted the ‘Functions’ and, at the beginning, too little time was spent thinking and too much drawing architectural plans and building model buildings (sorry, but that model really reminded me of ‘Spinal Tap’)
It might have been better had the Council had the courage to knock down the carbuncle instead of fiddling with alternative seating arrangements.
Devoid of ideas of their own I imaging the council will try to loot other peoples’ successes,like the the Northcote Tribute Gigs. The Film Society to run the cinema I’ve heard …. really …
Perhaps the cinema should be called The Babel Astoria …
I saw that request for ideas too newcomer! But I just assumed they were taking the proverbial..!
I fear that buses will be stooping on the main road as that is what they are looking at in near by Drayton !! Drayton will become a max speed limit of 20 mph and you can stop or flag down a bus anywhere along the main road !!! Complete mayhem !!!! With all this uncertainty going on where are our local councillors etc probually jollying it perhaps in one of our twin towns !!!!!!
I went past the supposed bus lay by by Morland Gardens today. I think that they are having a joke! The lay by is not big enough to accommodate a scooter. Guy is correct the buses will stop on the main road just past the traffic lights. Not an ideal situation.
I’ve seen the supposed bus lay-by too and at first sight thought it had been put there to accommodate a speed camera van, certainly doesn’t look big enough for a bus unless it’s a very small one. I suppose the upshot will be that traffic in the Drayton Road will appear to be lessened… until another bus rolls along with a queue of cars it’s held up behind it.
twice recently I have come into Abingdon from Drayton and it has taken 30 minutes to get from the Abingdon side of Drayton to Spring Rd. It is horrendous.
Alos I quite agree (having had plenty of time to study it) that layby is tiny, no good to anyone!