Villagers concerned over ‘frightening experiences’ on major Cambridgeshire road including near misses

Cambridgeshire villagers have described 'near misses' on an A-road near their homes where two people died in 2022. Residents of Lolworth expressed concerns about a section of the A1307 where they have experienced unsafe overtakes and speeding drivers.

The A1307 near the village between Swavesey and Bar Hill is a single carriageway road with no barriers between the lanes. Anonymised testimonies collected by Lolworth Parish Council and shared with CambridgeshireLive describe some 'frightening' experiences on the road.

A Cambridgeshire County Council^[1] spokesperson said the junction was "not a collision cluster site" and action had been taken following residents' concerns. They said safety on roads maintained by the authority is a priority.

One person said they had seen at least two 'near-miss incidents' over the last year and experienced one themselves. They said: "The typical move seems to be vehicles coming from Bar Hill pulling out to overtake right on the junction.

"Someone pulling out of the village, turning left towards Bar Hill, would be 100% justified pulling into an empty carriageway at the exact same time... and boom." They said they have also experienced other drivers overtaking them just before the junction for Lolworth, despite slowing down and indicating right.

A serious collision near the Robin's Lane junction on November 9, 2021^[2], saw one person taken to Addenbrooke's Hospital by ambulance for further care. The road was closed for several hours while emergency services responded.

Great-grandparents Susannah and William Wilson, both aged 80 from Swavesey, both died after a crash on the road after another driver overtook farm vehicles and failed to return to his side of the road. Zahid Majid was found guilty of two counts causing death by dangerous driving^[3] in August and handed a 10-year prison sentence on October 30.

Another Lolworth resident said: "One feels the requirement to indicate very early and move towards the centre of the road in case anyone makes a move to overtake seeing the road is so long and clear of oncoming traffic. The Lolworth sign is so small road users who are unfamiliar with the road don't realise there is a turning coming up, there are no road markings to say not to overtake at that point or any speed restriction."

A third person said they had had a 'frightening' experience when a hay lorry tried to overtake, despite the fact they were indicating to turn right towards the village. They added that some drivers see the road "as a racing track".

A Cambridgeshire^[4] County Council spokesperson said: "The A1307 junction with Robin’s Lane at Lolworth is not a collision cluster site. However, in response to residents' concerns, in the last few weeks we have added larger and more visible junction warning signs and painted 'SLOW' on both approaches.

"Safety on our roads is a key priority. We continue to assess all our roads and make changes where appropriate and supported by evidence."

References

1. ^{^} A Cambridgeshire County Council (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
2. ^{^} serious collision near the Robin's Lane junction on November 9, 2021 (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
3. ^{^} Zahid Majid was found guilty of two counts causing death by dangerous driving (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
4. ^{^} Cambridgeshire (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)