New pedestrian crossings coming to Portsmouth Road

Work is set to start on Monday 20 May 2024 on the delivery of new pedestrian crossings on Portsmouth Road, funded by the Department for Transport’s (DfT) Safer Roads Fund

Portsmouth Road is one of 27 sites across the UK that has been independently surveyed and identified by the Road Safety Foundation on behalf of the DfT for safety improvements for all road users.

The Safer Roads Fund supports a pro-active approach to road safety, based not just on existing injury accident records but also risk of injury accidents as assessed by the Safer Roads Foundation. Providing these improved pedestrian facilities will reduce conflict with traffic on this busy corridor and will not have a significant impact on driver’s journey times.

The Safer Roads scheme will deliver a new zebra crossing nearby to the junction with Spring Road, helping local people to access Miller’s Pond, Mayfield Park and the Shoreburs Greenway and a new zebra crossing nearby to the junction with Botley Road, making it easier for young people to access Oasis Academy Mayfield, and the nearby play area.

In addition, continuous crossings will be installed at Fort Road, Adey Close and The Grove which will reinforce the pedestrian priority introduced to the Highway Code in 2022 and make crossing these junctions to one of the existing signal crossings or the new zebra crossings easier.

The improvements will be delivered in four phases, starting with Spring Road on Monday 20 May 2024 before progressing to Fort Road in June and Botley Road and Adey Close in July and August. This first phase at Spring Road will begin after the Eastern Quietway works at Spring Road and Station Road have been completed, allowing local traffic to use this route again.

For the safety of road users and work crews, and to assist traffic flow, traffic management will be in place for each phase of the project. At Spring Road, temporary traffic signals will be in use, and these will be manually controlled at peak times to minimise delays.

The Spring Road junction will also be closed throughout to provide a storage and welfare area, and which will further help to manage traffic on Portsmouth Road in the vicinity of the works area.

Councillor Eamonn Keogh, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said: “These new pedestrian crossings will help people walking, wheeling and cycling to safely cross a significant route into the city centre in key locations, reducing the risk of accidents and making it easier to access essential community facilities such as schools, doctors’ surgeries, play areas and the Green Flag award winning Mayfield Park and Green Flag nominated Miller’s Pond Local Nature Reserve.”

For more information about each phase of the project, please visit Portsmouth Road.