Nottingham City Centre Roundabout Replaced: The Rationale Behind the Change

Maid Marian Way, a key thoroughfare in Nottingham city centre, previously earned the description of “one of the ugliest roads in Europe” after its construction in the 1960s. The route is currently generating further discussion following the substitution of a roundabout with a T-junction. Nottingham City Council asserts the multi-million pound initiative is essential, citing the roundabout’s status as “outdated” and “polluted.” However, the project has caused confusion for some and annoyance for others due to the ongoing roadworks and associated disruption. The council has contended that the previous configuration presented “more challenging for pedestrians and cyclists” and had evolved into a “barrier to movement” for motorists within the city. Council leader Neghat Khan, speaking to the BBC on Friday, stated that the original layout contained “a lot of wasted space,” further explaining that the roundabout “worked for cars but not for pedestrians and cyclists.” She elaborated, “If you looked at, generally, the top of Maid Marian [Way], it wasn’t connecting with the rest of the parts [of the city centre].” Khan also remarked, “As a citizen crossing the road, it wasn’t the easiest.” A public consultation regarding the roundabout was conducted by the council in 2022, gathering over 400 responses. The authority reported that only a quarter of drivers considered the roundabout “good,” whereas 54% of pedestrians described its use as “poor” or “very poor.” The council further indicated that the consultation’s findings suggested a T-junction as a more favored option. The city council, which announced its effective bankruptcy last year, is not funding the £8.97m project. The undertaking is instead being financed by the Future High Streets Fund, a government initiative established in 2018 with the aim to “renew and reshape” town centres and high streets nationwide. Commencing in May, the work was initially scheduled for completion by next spring but has since been postponed to summer 2025. Beyond substituting the roundabout with a T-junction, the project also encompasses: Shortly after the new junction became operational, bus operators trentbarton and Nottingham City Transport (NCT) issued warnings about service delays resulting from the alterations, with NCT stating that bus users had been “disproportionately affected.” NCT, founded in 1986 as an arms-length company of the city council but operating independently of council matters, expressed particular criticism of the situation, reporting that it had communicated “strong concerns” regarding the modifications. Tom Bridge, operations director at trentbarton, reported that some of their buses had encountered delays reaching up to 55 minutes. A different bus driver had previously informed the BBC that travel durations had significantly increased. He commented, “You really are sat there for quite a while, and then the passengers are on your mind, and you know they have places to be and they’re the ones properly affected by this – you can see it.” Following the council’s announcement that the new T-junction was functional, hundreds of individuals voiced their dissatisfaction with the plans on social media platforms. On the BBC Nottingham Facebook page, one commenter questioned the removal of a “perfectly functional” roundabout, while another asserted that the council was “fixing something that wasn’t broken.” In reply, Khan informed the BBC that the updated layout would not generate greater congestion compared to the former roundabout. She stated, “At the end of the project, they [drivers and bus passengers] won’t be any worse off. We are monitoring that as we’re going along.” Several businesses in the vicinity have also conveyed their discontent. Milee Kim, proprietor of Ubeauty Clinic on Upper Parliament Street, reported that numerous clients had canceled appointments due to traffic congestion. She remarked, “It’s really, really bad for our business. Normally we have 20 clients [a day]. Now it’s only three or four.” She further explained: “They [clients] are calling us saying, ‘I need to cancel the appointment because of traffic’. The buses [which stop near the salon] are sometimes cancelled, so the client can’t catch the right bus from their location to here. This is the big problem.” An additional business owner, who requested anonymity, indicated a 50% decrease in walk-in trade since the commencement of the works, attributing the reduction in pedestrian traffic to “off-putting” barriers on the pavement and the repositioning of a pedestrian crossing. Conversely, James Irons, owner of Neon Wolf tattoo studio on Derby Road, expressed general support for the plans, believing they could enhance business. He commented, “If it opens up and becomes less of a roundabout [and] more of a pedestrianised area, then it’s good for us because it draws us a little bit closer to the city centre.” In response to critiques from bus companies and residents, the council has already implemented modifications to the junction. This week, NCT reported that following discussions with the local authority, adjustments to the construction and signal phasing were enacted to facilitate bus movement. A council spokesperson stated that a brief segment of bus lane had been incorporated into the approach to the bus stop on Tollhouse Hill to assist bus passage. They also mentioned that a yellow box had been installed “so that motorists don’t block the junction” and that signal phasing had been modified. A council spokesperson had previously underscored that the circumstances were “temporary while works are in progress.” Council leader Khan offered an apology for the inconvenience but asserted that businesses would experience the advantages of increased footfall once the project concludes. She declared, “I’ve got no problems apologising to the people who were delayed in those early stages.” Khan continued, “I just feel like if you want to be ambitious for the city, like we are, and if we’re doing big construction [projects] that take over a year to do, there will be disruption.” She concluded, “When this project is complete next summer, they [businesses] will see all the benefits and this will be a busy, busy part of the city centre that currently doesn’t have enough of the footfall that it will see when the project is complete.” Follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.