(Yesterday, 3:46 pm)deanmachine wrote Nah, the Felling Bypass bus lane is good. Opening another lane of regular traffic wouldn't do anything. It's used by 5 services constantly, so i'd hardly say it was a waste. Just look at the Western Bypass extension, it's mostly complete and the traffic jams haven't changed in the slightest. One more lane bro.
With the Western By-Pass, I'd argue the congestion continues because the flow of traffic hasn't changed. There are too many junctions between Birtley (A1231) and Swalwell (A694) which means localised traffic tends to impede long-distance traffic, and that hasn't been rectified despite the 'improvements' that have been made. In the 80s (or early 90s), a bypass to the Western By-Pass was actually proposed to segregate the two, but nothing came to fruition. That's probably what should have happened over last ten years or so, but instead the Highways Agency opted for narrower lanes and a 50mph speed restriction. A missed opportunity really.
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