Consultation:
Okehampton Town Centre
A public consultation was held on changes to traffic signals and priority arrangements at three key junctions within Okehampton Town Centre.
The consultation closed on 15 November 2020.
The results of the consultation can be seen in the Okehampton town centre consultation report.
Background
The historic arrangement of roads and continued growth in Okehampton has led to congestion, especially around the key town centre junctions.
With the allocation of further development in the Local Plan, congestion may worsen in the absence of an intervention, which could have the following implications:
- Increasing delays for road users, reducing economic output
- Reduced access to local services, including supermarkets, the library and the hospital, upon which the over 30,000 people in Okehampton’s rural catchment rely; and
- Increasing air pollution within the town centre, due to increasing numbers of queuing vehicles
A previously identified solution (2010) was the creation of a town centre access road. However, a further study carried out in 2017 concluded that the provision of a town centre access road is currently undeliverable. As a result, Devon County Council has been working to develop alternative proposals.
Proposals
The proposals involve the re-design of up to three key junctions which are currently under signal control. These comprise:
- Market Street with the B3260, Fore Street and George Street
- Mill Road with the B3260, East Street; and
- B3215, Barton Road with the B3260, Exeter Road
Two options are being considered for the corridor: revised priority or priority junctions with give-way arrangements on the minor arms. Traffic modelling has shown that similar journey time savings can be achieved with either option, as details in the Traffic Modelling Report.
The consultation leaflet contains the full details of both of these packages, which are summarised below.
Revised priority package
Under this package, traffic signals would be removed from each junction, which would be redesigned as follows:
- Market Street Junction: Priority-free
- Mill Road Junction: Priority-free
- Barton Road Junction: Mini roundabout
Priority-free means that all approaching vehicles have the same right across the junction, rather than anyone having right of way. Drivers instead rely on slow speeds, visual prompts and considerate behaviour.
For the priority-free junctions, the existing traffic signals and road markings would be removed. Each junction area could be differently surfaced to surrounding roads to help prompt drivers to acknowledge the priority-free arrangement.
The pedestrian crossing arrangements at each junction are yet to be finalised and we would welcome feedback on styles and locations through this consultation. To the east of Barton Road Junction, the footway could be widened to accommodate a cycle/zebra crossing.
The plans of the proposals can be viewed below:
- Market Street Junction
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the uncontrolled crossings on Market Street, George Street and West Street as being retained, with a new signal-controlled crossing installed on Fore Street. - Mill Road Junction
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the signal-controlled crossing on East Street West as being converted to an uncontrolled crossing, with the existing uncontrolled crossing on Mill Road and the existing signal-controlled crossing on East Street East retained, and different colour surfacing used to delineate the crossing points. - Barton Road Junction
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed and replaced by a mini-roundabout. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the refuge islands on Exeter Road being removed, with a widened footway and parallel cycle/pedestrian crossing installed on Exeter Road East.
Priority junction package
Under this package, traffic signals would be removed from each junction, with the priority arrangements formalised using road markings and signage, as described below:
- For Market Street Junction, West Street would become the ‘give-way’ arm;
- For Mill Road Junction, Fore Street would become the ‘give-way’ arm under Option A and Mill Road would become the ‘give-way’ arm under Option B; and
- Barton Road Junction would either become a priority junction with Barton Road as the ‘give-way arm’, or a mini roundabout. The eastern footway could be widened to accommodate a parallel cycle / zebra crossing
Again, the pedestrian crossing arrangements at each junction are yet to be finalised and we would welcome feedback on styles and locations through this consultation.
The plans of the proposals can be viewed below:
- Market Street Junction
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed, and the junction reconfigured as a priority junction with West Street as the ‘give way’ arm. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the uncontrolled crossings on Market Street and George Street as being retained, with a new signal-controlled crossing installed on Fore Street, and the uncontrolled crossing on West Street removed. - Mill Road Junction – Option A
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed, and the junction reconfigured as a priority junction with East Street West as the ‘give way’ arm, and the kerbline realigned southwards in the northern corner of the junction. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the signal-controlled crossing on East Street West as being converted to an uncontrolled crossing, with the existing uncontrolled crossing on Mill Road and the existing signal-controlled crossing on East Street East retained, and different colour surfacing used to delineate the crossing points. - Mill Road Junction – Option B
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed, and the junction reconfigured as a priority junction with Mill Road as the ‘give way’ arm. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the signal-controlled crossing on East Street West as being converted to an uncontrolled crossing, with the existing uncontrolled crossing on Mill Road and the existing signal-controlled crossing on East Street East retained, and different colour surfacing used to delineate the crossing points. - Barton Road Junction – Priority Junction
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed, and the junction reconfigured as a priority junction with Barton Road as the ‘give way’ arm. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the refuge islands on Exeter Road being removed, with a widened footway and parallel cycle/pedestrian crossing installed on Exeter Road East. - Barton Road Junction – Mini Roundabout (as under Revised priority package)
The existing traffic signals and stop lines are to be removed and replaced by a mini-roundabout. The pedestrian crossing arrangements are subject to change based on consultation feedback but the plan provisionally shows the refuge islands on Exeter Road being removed, with a widened footway and parallel cycle/pedestrian crossing installed on Exeter Road East.
Have your say
Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, no physical consultation events were held. However, an online webinar was held on 21 October (see a recording of the presentation).
If you would like further information, please get in touch using the contact details below:
Address: Transport Planning, Matford Offices, County Hall, Topsham Road, Exeter, EX2 4QD
Email: transportplanning@devon.gov.uk
Accessibility
We take accessibility seriously and recognise that some of the information presented in the files available on this page may not be fully accessible to someone using assistive technology such as a screen reader. If you need guidance or an alternative format, email transportplanning@devon.gov.uk with details of any preferred format and the assistive technology you use.
FAQs
Why are you not proposing the construction of a Town Centre Access Road as part of this consultation?
Since the initial feasibility study for a Town Centre Access Road was produced, a further study has been conducted, which concluded that such a scheme is currently undeliverable. This is due to a number of major constraints, including the need to acquire land and properties, environmental impacts on the River Okement and mature trees, and safety concerns at Market Street. It is unlikely that the scheme would be able to secure planning permission or suitable levels of funding. We are therefore considering alternatives to tackling the town centre congestion in Okehampton.
Would the proposals be delivered in phases or as a single package?
This will depend on progress in securing funding for the proposals. If it is not initially possible to secure enough funding to modify all three junctions, the scheme could be phased, delivering some improvements in traffic conditions whilst additional funding opportunities are explored.
Were the potential impacts of planned local developments accounted for when developing the proposals?
The junctions have been modelled under both current and future traffic conditions. Traffic counts were conducted on a typical weekday in 2018 to form a baseline, whilst future flows have been forecast using estimates of trips that will be generated by proposed developments. According to the traffic modelling, both junction packages would be likely to deliver similar overall benefits compared to the current arrangements.
Have the traffic conditions which occur when traffic is diverted off the A30 through Okehampton town centre been considered?
It would not be feasible to deliver improvements sufficient to accommodate the traffic demand observed on these occasions. This would require significant capacity increases through the town centre junctions to accommodate occasional extreme demand.
How will the needs of pedestrians, particularly those who are older or have sensory or mobility impairments, be catered for under the proposals?
Pedestrian crossing arrangements are yet to be finalised. Some possibilities are outlined in the consultation designs, but we would welcome any suggestions for maintaining and improving the safety and comfort of pedestrians. These will then be used to inform the pedestrian facility design at the next stage of the project development. Stakeholders representing older people and people with disabilities will be consulted further once detailed designs have been produced, to ensure the final scheme is as inclusive as possible.
Could the proposals for Mill Road junction increase delays for traffic, particularly school buses, exiting Mill Road?
The options presented would be expected to deliver an overall benefit to road users, compared to the current situation. However, it is forecast that Option B for Mill Road Junction under the ‘priority junction’ package would increase delays for traffic exiting Mill Road, particularly during peak times, due to reduced gaps in the mainline traffic flow along the B3260. We would welcome comments as to whether these disbenefits would be an acceptable trade-off for the forecast increased benefits for road users on the mainline.
Why has the proposed parallel cycle/zebra crossing at Barton Road junction been situated on the eastern arm of the junction, rather than the western arm?
There is insufficient space on the western arm of the junction to safely accommodate the proposed crossing and footway widening, hence it has been situated on the eastern arm in the plans presented here. However, as noted above, pedestrian crossing arrangements are yet to be finalised, so we would welcome feedback on these proposals.
Could the existing footbridges across the Okement Rivers be repurposed for vehicular use, providing alternative routes to/from the town centre and supermarkets?
Unfortunately, upgrading these bridges would not be straightforward in engineering terms, due to the significantly higher load that would be exerted by vehicular traffic compared to pedestrians. Furthermore, many of the same constraints would apply as with the construction of a Town Centre Access Road, such as potential environmental impacts and the need for land acquisition (to enable construction of the upgraded structures). Therefore, this proposal is also considered undeliverable at present.