South Leicestershire MP, Alberto Costa, has welcomed a forthcoming review by National Highways (formerly Highways England) to assess the safety of the South Leicestershire stretch of the A5.
The review follows a recent meeting between Alberto , Leicestershire County Councillor for Lutterworth, Cllr Rosita Page, and the Regional Director of National Highways – Mr Costa organised the meeting alongside Cllr Page after a fatal collision on Friday 5th November in which a person was killed at the High Cross junction on the A5 near Claybrooke Magna.
Alberto had previously been successful in lobbying National Highways to look into local concerns at the High Cross and Smockington Hollow junctions, and £3 million was invested in road safety improvements, however the MP has asked highways bosses to assess how effective the improvements have been and to explore what further measures could be considered.
Alberto said, “I very much welcome the forthcoming review of the safety of the South Leicestershire portion of the A5, with a particular emphasis on the traffic schemes presently in place at the High Cross and Smockington Hollow junctions. A number of constituents contacted my office following the recent fatal collision at High Cross, and I quite agree with them that action is needed on this road to ensure that it is safe for my constituents and other road users”.
Harborough District and Leicestershire County Councillor, Rosita Page, added, “I am delighted that our MP secured a meeting with the Regional Head of National Highways to discuss safety issues on the A5 with a focus on the High Cross and Smockington Hollow junctions. I was pleased to join Alberto to reiterate local concerns and to request an evaluation of safety measures on the A5”.
Alberto concluded, “I am most grateful to Councillor Page to her ongoing, tireless work on improving the safety of the A5. We had a very useful and productive meeting with National Highways, and discussed a number of the good suggestions made by constituents to help reduce the number of collisions we are seeing on this stretch of road. We discussed the possibility of a new roundabout, the installation of speed cameras and a change to the road layout, all of which National Highways have promised to take into consideration during their forthcoming review. I understand that the review will be ready early in the New Year at which point I will be reconvening a further meeting with all concerned to see how we can ensure safety on the A5 is improved for all”.
