Death road cash not enough

By James Fraser

SUFFOLK'S "cemetery" road will not be saved by a "measly" £800,000, according an expert engineer.

Jeffrey Stansfield, former county surveyor for Suffolk, said: "There have been 70 deaths in 20 years and many people seriously injured.

"The road is a cemetery and there is a chance of an accident every other minute.

"It is a road that is hopelessly inadequate for its purpose."

Mr Stansfield campaigned tirelessly for improved safety measures on the road of death during his two years as county surveyor.

The Evening Star has also fought a long-running campaign to make the A140 safe.

Now Mr Stansfield fears safety measures recently announced will be far too little and far too late.

Last week Suffolk County Council announced it was to spend up to £837,000 on the A140 over the next decade.

The road, which links Ipswich and Norwich, has claimed 79 lives in the last 21 years.

Yet funds earmarked for road improvements are less than a fifth of the £5million set aside for work on the A12 between Ipswich and Lowestoft.

Mr Stansfield said many accidents on the notorious road were caused by drivers getting "hot-headed" after being stuck in lengthy tailbacks.

And he said making most - if not all - of the road a dual carriageway was the only way to solve the problem.

Yet council chiefs dismissed dualling on the grounds of expense and the disruption it would cause to local communities.

Bypasses have also been left out of the plan, which instead allows for passing points for slow-moving vehicles and signs to encourage better driving.

A reduction in the speed limit to 50mph is also being mooted.

But Mr Stansfield was scathing in his criticism for the council, who took over management of the road from the Highways Agency last year.

He said: "They have cut themselves off from Government funding. It now has to be funded locally and there is not enough money to do it."