Two of the busiest roads in Ipswich are set to be widened and re-marked in a bid to ease congestion around the town’s fastest-growing retail area.
Congestion has been growing along Nacton Road between the A14 and the Thrasher roundabout and along Ransomes Way since the Futura Park – which includes John Lewis and Waitrose – opened just before Christmas 2012.
As part of the planning permission for that, the developers had to give money for road improvements in the area.
Earlier this year the county council published proposals to ease the congestion which were put on show locally and invited comments from the public.
The consultation period finished at the beginning of March and officers are currently analysing the replies before drawing up detailed proposals.
The proposals for improvements to the road between the A14 at Nacton and Felixstowe Road across the Thrasher and Ransomes Way roundabouts got significant public support.
However there were objections to proposed changes at the Nacton Road junctions with Landseer Road and Lindbergh Road. They will now not be proceeded with.
With engineers now preparing the final plans, there are hopes that the work could start towards the end of the summer – which should mean the traffic should flow easier to the stores at Futura Park and the Sandlings retail park by the time the Christmas season arrives.
Suffolk County Council cabinet member for transport Graham Newman said it was important that work was carried out to ease traffic in the area.
“It has become something of a retail honeypot over the last few years,” he said.
“Given the large number of people heading for the shops and businesses in that part of the town, it is never going to be easy getting around there.
“But hopefully these changes will make it easier for people to get around what has become one of the more popular areas of the town.”
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