Improvement work on the A40 at Hatters Lane and Rayners Avenue junctions in High Wycombe

Matthew Clark | January 7, 2020

Hatters Lane roundabout junction improvement plan. (Image supplied by Buckinghamshire County Council)

Further improvement work is to take place on the A40 at the Hatters Lane and Rayners Avenue junctions in High Wycombe.

On Monday 13th January 2020 work is scheduled to start at the Hatters Lane roundabout. On Monday 20th January 2020 improvement work is due to start at the Rayners Avenue junction.

The £6.6m improvements are part of a Buckinghamshire County Council junction upgrade package, aimed at reducing journey times in and out of High Wycombe and making them more reliable.

The scheme includes:

Linking traffic lights using state of the art technology to help traffic flow more smoothly.
Introducing dedicated turning lanes.
Renovating pedestrian crossings.

At Hatters Lane, road widening will extend the short in bound bus lane around the roundabout. Improvements, which will take around 10 weeks, include:

Moving the High Wycombe bound bus stop away from the roundabout exit to ensure buses do not block the traffic and to improve junction safety and capacity.
Upgrading the uncontrolled crossing and moving it to line up with the new bus stop.

The work at the Hatters Lane junction will be done between 9.30am and 3.30pm using narrower traffic lanes and footway diversions. Some night work is expected later for resurfacing and white lining.

At Rayners Avenue, on the approach to Loudwater, new technology will enable the junction to co-ordinate with others along London Road. Improvements at this junction include:

Replacing and upgrading traffic lights and installing new controller cabinets.
Refurbishing the pedestrian crossing 50 metres south of the junction.
Refreshing line markings around the junction.

Rayners Avenue junction improvement plan. (Image supplied by Buckinghamshire County Council)

Work at the Rayners Avenue junction is expected to take five weeks and will be carried out between 9.30am to 3.30pm. For the first week the improvement work will be confined to footways. From Monday 27th January 2020 temporary signals will operate while the permanent traffic lights are being replaced. Lane closures will be needed during pedestrian crossing and junction refurbishment.

The two phases build on improvements made at Gordon Road and Gomm Road junctions during the autumn of 2019.

Towards the end of February 2020 the improvement work moves to the Micklefield junction on London Road where it is proposed to:

Remove a High Wycombe bound bus lane.
Widen the road.
Realign kerbs.
Introduce a new crossing layout.

Mark Shaw, Deputy Leader and Transport Cabinet Member at Buckinghamshire County Council, said: ‘We all know London Road is a busy corridor and people are keen to see something significant done.

Thanks to funding from the Government and the Local Transport Board, we’ve been able to make this serious investment in High Wycombe’s infrastructure.

While we make these improvements, I hope people will bear with us, and if there are delays, please accept our apologies.‘

Work on the scheme is funded by the County Council from Government grants and funding through Buckinghamshire Local Enterprise Partnership. It is expected to finish in summer 2020.

*Source of article : Press release from Buckinghamshire County Council.