[A] scheme designed to improve traffic flow at a key road junction in Kendal is scheduled to be completed on Wednesday 6 June.
Cumbria County Council has delivered the project which involves new traffic signal controls and a new road surface and road markings at the busy junction of Shap Road and Mintsfeet Road in the town.
Funding for the improvement work was secured through the Government’s National Productivity Investment Fund.
The county council identified the junction as requiring improvement to maintain traffic flow and reduce congestion in future years.
Road users exiting Mintsfeet Road on to Shap Road currently experience an average delay of about one minute. However, with future developments planned in South Lakeland District Council’s Local Plan and a new Sainsbury’s store due to open later this year, it is predicted this delay could increase to an average of over six minutes if the junction remained unchanged.
A consultation was carried out with local residents and businesses, and following analysis of the feedback, the option progressed was installation of traffic lights.
Cllr Keith Little, Cumbria County Council Cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “This is a key junction in Kendal, serving businesses on the industrial estate as well as local residents. With development like the new Sainsbury’s store in the pipeline, the council identified the need to improve traffic flow and secured funding for this scheme through the National Productivity Investment Fund.”
