I wonder if, like me, you have a real pet hate junction that is not simply annoying, but truly, on occasions, absolutely frightening?
I would like to nominate the A12 on-slip (North-bound) at Witham, Essex as mine.
There is a very short accelleration road followed by an extremely short exit zone - about two bus lengths - with less than good visibility.
To make all this much more hazardous, I have frequently been 'lucky' enough to have the driver ahead of me 'bottle out' at the last minute, coming to a standstill whilst I am still accellerating to 60-70mph in an attempt to blend in.
I have been told that the southbound on-slip is very similar, but fortunately have never had to use that one.
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I'm sure one of the worst is the descent from the M4 hammersmith flyover eastbound onto the A4 proper before Kew roundabout.
You emerge onto a fast dual carriageway with absolutely zero slip run up from a standing start with 3 cars abreast !
Even worse when there's a Snoggi billboard with 50 topless women that hits you between the eyes just as you are frantically accelerating and trying to avoid cars coming from behind at 60mph.
The first corner at Monza is easier.
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They've altered it now, but the old layout of the turning off the A1 by the Langford water tower used to be a nightmare. Trying to turn right towards the village, you'd stop in the central reservation wating for a gap in the oncoming traffic - which was approaching over a blind crest at 70mph, sometimes much more! I timed it when I was heading north up the A1 through the same junction once, at 70mph you had just over 1 second from first sight of the crossing until you were going through it... At 100mph, much less!
A real test of hill start ability and clutch control, this used to be. When I was teaching SWMBO to drive, she got out of the car and made me drive it across the 2nd half of the junction!
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Slip to the East-bound A406 (North Circular) at Brent Cross. You can't see a thing until you reach the bottom of the ramp and traffic is bombing past at 40 mph.
I once pulled out into a very tight gap there and realised too late that the car behind had blue lights! Yes, I did get pulled over, but no further action.
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The M4/A4 isn't *that* bad is it? I go through there reasonably often and I don't find too scary, although visibility is quite bad.
Compared to the various A14 services just north of Cambridge, it's easy. Try pulling out into 70mph + rush hour traffic, all tailgaiting each other, with no discernible gaps.
That's the kind of place where you *need* a sub 10 second 0-60 or you'll be there all day.
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Are you talking about the bridge near the cemetery, near where the disused lay-by? I know the feeling. I regularly travel between Girton College and London, using M11 all the way from or to J14. About 50% of the time I need to stop stationary at the start of the slip-road so I can get a run up to 70 before I can pull out.
Most times though there will be a trucker slow down and flash so I can get out. Patience usually pays off.
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I take it that frostbite's post is about the A12 Witham slip north of Witham and not the one that I am thinking of.
That is the northbound A12 on-slip at hatfield Peveril, a curved approach so you can't see and can't build up speed, very short merge zone, A12 itself on a left curve.
The shame of it is, a lot of the joining traffic exits less than two hundred yards futher on to go into Witham, so a short local bypass accomodated on the farmland alongside the A12 would avoid a large proportion of the joining traffic from risking their necks.
Brian
Still learning (I hope)
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Joining the A1 northbound at Newark. Similar to Frostbite's original: round a corner, very short sliproad and no visibility until it's all a bit late. I too have nearly punted into the back of someone whilst I've been looking over my shoulder and the car in front has baled out. To make matters worse, the sliproad is 2 way and quite narrow at the top, taking the stuff off the A1 and into Newark, so you can be caught out if you're not expecting an HGV to be coming at you, over the white line. It's even worse at night: truly brown trousers time. Like the A12, there's nothing but a manky looking field to the side, so a solution could be quick and easy. May be it's the roadplanners revenge for having to design a junction in a town with such a childish anagrammatical nickname...
O
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Top you all.
New A43 between Towcester and M1 junction 15a. Just past Tiffield you have to sit in the outside lane of the dual carriageway in order to turn right for Blisworth.
You sit in the outside lane and slow for the turn and idiots sit on your bumper hitting their horns. You have then to stop in an island in the middle of the dual carriageway and wait for a space in the two lane traffic coming up at you at 70mph+.
If you stall when attempting to cross the other carriageway you are dead meat.
Only open a year and 3 deaths already, two being a nanny and her charge.
Locals will not use the turn and divert 5 miles through Shutlanger instead. Whoever designed this needs to be shot.
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Thommo
Used to live in the area up to 4 years ago. I'm amazed they haven't done anything about it! Also bad was the right turning on to the A43 from Tiffield (IIRC) a few hundred yards before the Bliswoth turn. A dash across the carriageway to the gap in the reservation, then hope somebody didn't take your back end off while you waited to get into the Towcester-bound steam!!
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Brian,
I also wondered if it was thi Hatfield Peveral slip road.
I had a lady on the IAM course who would drive miles to avoid this entry to the A12 - even tried parking just after the bridge and having a look at the traffic with her to try to see the effect of heavies on the inside lane moving most of the cars to the outside lane, making some kind of gap for safer entry.
Having a good look left as you cross the bridge can give you some info about what you are likely to find...I am also prepared to slow down to make sure I do not have a car in front who might stop in the slip road ( as mentioned above) while I am doing my lifesaver over the shoulder check.
There was a plan to do a bypass to Witham about two years ago to avoid this entry - don't know what became of it though.
Matt35
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Matt35
I think the road works have moved up the scale a bit, from what I recall of recent local paper reports, but it sounded more extensive and will take longer to do than the local parallel idea which would be quick and easy.
In daylight that junction is intimidating. In the dark and rain it's positively heart-stopping!
Brian
Still learning (I hope)
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Brian,
Sounds as if you are a local - do you know the other local Mickey Finn?
Take the SECOND Witham exit after the Hatfield Peveral entry and head for Witham...arrive at a kind of roundabout with almost invisible Give Way road surface markings and full of potholes, as you take a right for Witham.
Traffic from your left has priority, coming from the first exit from the A12 (?), but how many drivers have not looked left, thinking that they are on a roundabout and had a bump - or worse.
Our own little Bermuda Triangle, if we include the clowns who take the wrong lane at the Boreham Interchange to save maybe 20 seconds?
Matt35
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Matt35
Yes, I know that one and always look twice, move once!
The Army and Navy has already been slated on another thread, so we'll leave that one out of here.
Brian
Still learning (I hope)
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A12 has several nasty junctions, Hatfield Peveral on-slip northbound has to be the worst, isn't there a bus stop at the end of the slip?
The art is revs just below max power but prepare to brake ....... confusing. Another good reason to buy a Caterham/Westfield/Dax etc, slip roads are then irrelevant,
M
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I would like to nominate an amazing layout on the start of the M3 as you leave Southampton.
there's a roundabout then a filling station, an exit to the left, then the main road starts .
The filling station is really busy as it's the last reasonably-priced fuel before the motoray, but when you leave to get back to the main road you have to go straight across the road at the exit to get in the flow on the main road .So you present yourself side-on to traffic taking that turn, then have a microsecond to get yourself into the flow on the main road.
It's amazing anyone allowed it.
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A lot of people have problems with coventrys ring road, probably because most people use it incorrectly (your supposed to drive in lane 2)
My worst junction is the 'Magic roundabout' in Hemel Hempstead one of those roundabouts with 6 mini roundabouts
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My worst junction is the 'Magic roundabout' in Hemel Hempstead one of those roundabouts with 6 mini roundabouts
They have a miniature version of that in Colchester - every bit as confusing and a lot less space to take avoiding action !
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As Tone says, the 'suicide junctions' on Coventrys ring road are a nightmare and the whole ring road is difficult because people don't follow the (great big, huge) signs telling you to drive in lane 2.
Also Covs Tollbar Island. Had to cross this every day for the last four years - seen so many accidents it's untrue.
Glad I moved out of Cov now.
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There must be something about the A12 entry slips, perhaps they were all designed by the same idiot. The one I use regularly and it still terrifies me, is the southbound entry on to the A12 from the Hadleigh-East Bergholt road; it's exactly as Brian W describes above for 'his' junction:
"a curved approach so you can't see and can't build up speed, very short merge zone, A12 itself on a left curve".
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hello everyone!
this topic reminded me of the Wetherby Roundabout on the A1, it was the first stop after what felt like 100 miles non-stop northbound driving and I recall everyone in the car I was in shouting to the driver to brake..
mind you I was driving at the time...
and now there's a bypass anyway...
I would nominate the "Scilly Isles" junction of the A309 and A307 at the Marquess of Granby between Thames Ditton and Esher. It's a full roundabout with a half roundabout grafted on to it. Since Thames Ditton was traffic calmed the idea was that traffic from there towards Hampton Court should take this route, which basically involves pulling out into fast-moving traffic TWICE, and as the first manoeuvre may involve a quick stop at the second white line problems are pre-programmed...
I would go via Leatherhead to avoid this one!
pat
(PS To avoid this turn people were literally driving into a small cul-de-sac and turning round - so they built a miniature wall across the central reservation of the A309...don't live on that road if you ever want the fire brigade to get to your house before it burns down...!)
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There must be something about the A12 entry slips, perhaps they were all designed by the same idiot.
More or less true, but there are some exceptions to prove the rule:-
Joining from Harwich or Clacton roads is quite well engineered, as is the on-slip coming from Dedham.
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Another one out in the sticks, glad I don't have to use this anymore.
A61 northbound Chesterfield
The on slip coming from town and entering opposite the hotel.
very short slip road, it and main road curved and also over a brow.
Just got over that when a mile further you get to death island by Tesco's. Used to be NSL on the roundabout and blimey most folks used to try and take it at 70 as well.
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M8 through Glasgow.
50mph (universally ignored) speed limit. About 6 junctions in the space of 2 miles. At one point 5 lanes wide (bear in mind most Scottish M-ways are 2 lanes, so they've got no idea what to do with FIVE!) - lanes 1 and 2 are the exit for the town centre junction - but run with the main carriageway for about 1 mile. If you're going onwards, in lane 3, at the limit of 50, you find cars, lorries, vans, buses passing you on BOTH sides at 70+. Further along there are on and off ramps IN THE OUTSIDE LANE! Coming over the Kingston bridge 'east' bound you find a third lane appears on the LH side - being both an on and off lane for 2 very close junctions.
A fine piece of highway engineering!
When the traffic starts to get heavy, the overhead matrices come on with '50' - acknowledgement that the speed limit is not enforced?
Surprisingly few accidents, but you do see an awful lot of very lost looking tourists in the summer!
Richard
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