Research carried out by transport body Midlands Connect has revealed that average speeds at peak times drop by nearly a half in the morning rush hour on the A5 between Hinckley and Tamworth.
Analysis shows the route sees a drop of 44% in average speeds in the AM leak, between 6 am and 10 am compared to off-peak journey times. The average speed on the route is 48 miles per hour, dropping to around 32 MPH during peak periods. In some locations, it can dip down as low as 10 miles per hour.
There were 180 road traffic incidents on this section of the A5 from 2017 to 2021, with 45 in 2019 and one in five of these (20%) resulting in ‘serious’ injuries to one or more people.
The corridor is one of the Midlands’ most important east-west connections and is at the heart of the “Logistics golden triangle” bounded by the M1, M6 and M69. This is an area of the country from which drivers can reach 90% of the population within four hours, a very important location for logistics firms.
In addition, the A5 junction at Gibbet Hill, located on the Warwickshire/Leicestershire border is at 98% capacity every morning. This junction is an important strategic location interchange between the A5 and A426, providing connections between the M1 and M6, as well as providing resilience to the strategic and local road network.
Average daily flows on this section of the A5 Corridor are approximately 7,000 vehicles in each direction but the Gibbet Hill junction is the 3rd worst bottleneck along the A5 corridor. This is anticipated to deteriorate further as more planned growth comes online.
Heavy congestion has been observed at the junction, particularly during peak times, with the volume of traffic close to exceeding traffic capacity and resulting in delays and long queues which impact residents, businesses and commuters.
While the A5 is managed and maintained by National Highways, we fully support the work being done to secure improvements.
As the highway authority, we know problems such as bridge strikes, congestion and accidents are having a detrimental impact on our residents throughout Hinckley as well as the villages in the south of the county. The A5 isn’t functioning, and we share the views of partners who are calling for improvements to be prioritised and additional funding made available.
Securing and delivering improvements on the A5 also resonates with the core themes of our draft new Local Transport Plan, which include supporting growth and boosting the local economy, improving people’s health and reducing the impacts of traffic on our communities. The urgent need is there to improve the road.
The corridor is one of the Midlands’ most important east-west connections and is at the heart of the “Logistics golden triangle”, bounded by the M1, M6 and M69. This is an area of the country from which drivers can reach 90% of the population within four hours, a very important location for logistics firms.
Person:Councillor Ozzy O’Shea, Leicestershire County Council cabinet member for highways and transport