Nottingham City Council explains changes made at Maid Marian Way to ease traffic problems

Nottingham City Council has explained the changes that have been made on Maid Marian Way, to try to help ease traffic problems at the newly-opened T-junction at the road's top end. The junction, which replaced the roundabout where Maid Marian Way, Derby Road and Upper Parliament Street meet, came under fire just days after its introduction when motorists experienced severe delays encountering it.

The council originally apologised and said that the problems were only due to the fact that the junction wasn't completely finished. But they took action after bus providers Nottingham City Transport (NCT) and Trent Barton put out a number of accusatory posts online, blaming the roadworks for delays to the city's bus network.

NCT first alluded to the changes in a statement on Wednesday, October 23, saying: "Through productive discussions, changes to the construction and signal phasing have been made that are, for the most part, allowing buses to flow through the junction whilst minimising delays to our services."

Nottinghamshire Live asked the council for a more detailed explanation on the changes. A spokesperson said: "A short section of bus lane has been added in the approach to the bus stop on Tollhouse Hill to help buses get through. We also added a yellow box so that motorists don’t block the junctions. Finally, we adjusted the signal phasing."

No further information was given on the changes to the traffic light signal phasing, but it is likely that the red lights at the top of Maid Marian Way were made less frequent. Yellow boxes help to keep junctions clear as according to the Highway Code, motorists must not enter boxes until the exit road or lane is clear.

The works at the Maid Marian Way junction are set to be completely finished by springtime next year. Funded by the government's Future High Street Fund, the work has seen and will see the removal of the roundabout, seen as a hinderance to pedestrians, and the pavements brought closer together with new green space being installed on the perimeter of the junction.