SAFETY AT FIVEWAYS MILDENHALL SUFFOLK - A11

Now that the Dual Carriageway has been completed we are experiencing an increased capacity in traffic volumes, this has therefore impacted on the Fiveways Roundabout at Barton Mills Mildenhall Suffolk. Residents of Mildenhall and other regular users of this Roundabout are seriously concerned about motorists safety due to the volumes of traffic that are now accessing the A11.

There are several concerning issues surrounding this as follows:-

A Traffic leaving Mildenhall queue excessively at peak times when approaching Fiveways Roundabout (this can tail back past The Hungry Horse Public House - Half Moon mini Roundabout) as motorists struggle to exit as the approaching traffic coming from Newmarket has increased dramatically and flows very fast

B Traffic approaching from Thetford direction wishing to exit at Mildenhall Junction find the lanes are not easy to follow also the volumes wishing to continue in the Newmarket direction, plus the additional motorists that have managed to join from Mildenhall and Brandon Junctions, have increased and this is causing accidents to occur.

C The addition of McDonalds and other retail units including a garage forecourt and car wash are only going to impact further around the Mildenhall Junction, when opened shortly, causing even more excessive pressure on this road and the Fiveways Roundabout, which in turn will probably cause even more accidents and congestion.

D We have had concerns raised by local businesses and National Companies regarding time schedules due to current tail backs - this is only going to get worse at weekends during the summer months when holiday makers using this road will also make an impact causing further delays..

E The majority of people local to Fiveways Roundabout Barton Mills and other regular users have stated that they would like to see Traffic Lights at the Roundabout and or a Flyover, these improvements would ease traffic congestion and help accessibility for all motorists which in turn would reduce the risks of accidents happening by people taking "chances" on Fiveways Roundabout.

F. There is also the issue with the joining onto the A11 heading Newmarket Direction from the Tuddenham Road Junction motorists are queuing and those that want to go to Barton Mills, who have to cross over the A11 are causing problems when tailback joins onto the fast lane of the A11 - this could cause a massive accident if someone approaching cannot switch lanes in time due to traffic volumes and an impact occurs this could in turn cause a concertina type impact and all queuing traffic could be affected this is causing concern already when traffic volumes are yet to increase in the summer months.

These are the initial points that have been raised, obviously there will be impacts on the ambulance, fire, police, air ambulance services which could be minimized if improvements are carried out hopefully in the manner suggested.

It is unreasonable to suggest, as has been made, that we will have to wait for volumes of traffic to increase further before traffic lights would be installed, thereby running the risks of loss of lives before something is done. The amount of money that would be needed to make these improvements should have been made available when the A11 was made a dual carriageway. To suggest that it will be considered when the traffic volumes increase is an insult to our intelligence, as surely this was whole point of the alterations to this road, and it will cost far more to do in five, ten, fifteen years and how many lives may have been lost in that time?