'IMPROVE DRIVER AWARENESS ON A18 IN BRIGG' - PLEA

BY KEN HARRISON 

The fundamental questions to ask are whether we really need traffic-light controlled junctions along Barnard Avenue, Brigg. 
Are these lights actually helping to improve the flow of traffic along the A18, as well as being an aid for pedestrians to cross the road? 
When the so-called 'by-pass' was constructed by Humberside Council, there was originally only one set of lights - at the junction of Old Courts; the second set at the Cary Lane junction was added after an unfortunate fatal accident, but, with a degree of sensitivity, why was it considered necessary to install a combination of a set of traffic lights and double pedestrian crossings at the junction, when properly sited, standalone pedestrian crossings would safely improve crossing Barnard Ave.?
With both sets of lights being less than 200m apart, they seem to be practically counter-productive - when one set of lights is on 'green' the subsequent set is on 'red' and traffic is caught in a no-man's land traffic jam, which then tails back for some considerable distance.
The situation is further exacerbated as the traffic lights have to progress through a set sequence; while traffic is at a stand-still along Barnard Ave., there are frequent occurrences when 'Go' lights allow non-existence ghost traffic to emerge from the minor roads.  
Equally, particularly when emerging from the minor roads in the early hours, motorists are unduly delayed owing to imagined traffic on Barnard Ave.
In addition, the yellow, half-block grid on the Old Courts side of Barnard Ave, because of the road camber, is not visible from Wesley Road......and the time allowed on 'Green' is only a matter of seconds - it's lucky if more than one car can  legally emerge from the side roads. 
The very high frequency of motorists moving off on 'Red' itself should give significant credence to the notion that many drivers are not doing it deliberately, but the confusion of 'Red/Green' combination is mistakenly influencing drivers.
Professional drivers are also being wrongly influenced - turning right from Barnard Ave into Old Courts, I was almost squashed to a pancake by a juggernaut erroneously pulling away from a 'Red'. By his hand gestures and flashing lights, he probably assumed he had priority, but it is extremely difficult to communicate with an enraged HGV driver from my elderly jalopy. 
Traffic approaching the lights from the direction of the Monument travel in a gradual left-curve.  
From the driver's seat, especially from the first car in the queue, the right-hand lights (right filter) are more conspicuous that those 'Ahead' lights on the left. 
Drivers further back in a queue have better sight-lines of the two columns of lights. 
For example, I have observed a flange of motorcyclists stopped at the lights; the two bikers who has their front wheels on the Stop-Line whizzed off when the right-turn filter green showed.....those behind realised their light was still on red. Indeed, if one is not aware that these lights are staggered, a green light within a driver's peripheral vision could, and does, influence the unwary driver to put the pedal to the metal. 
Furthermore, under the circumstances, perhaps, both safety and drivers' awareness could be improved enormously if duplicate traffic lights were situated on the opposite side of the controlled junction; if a driver fails to recognise the lights' priority, there would be a clear reminder that the lights are staggered.
Overall, are both sets of traffic lights necessary? 
If the lights are considered necessary, then there is a urgent need for the Authority to improve drivers awareness that the Old Courts' lights are staggered.