Safety fears over roundabout as drivers report bypass ‘dip’

According to regular motorists who pass through it, the roundabout where Abingdon Road meets the Southern Bypass dips through the middle and the lanes are too narrow.

Motorists say that the dip makes them “lose sight of the road ahead” and could potentially be used by joyriders as a ramp.

Parish councillor for Old Marston and regular motorist Tony Greenfield said the dip was deep enough to gain leverage off the ground.

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The 69-year-old from Old Marston said: “Joyriders could use it as a ramp because you could certainly get your wheels off the ground.

“The road dips and then goes up very quickly and then it bends. I end up getting squeezed and lose sight of the road ahead.

“I do not understand why the council did it because it is a very excessive dip and it does not feel safe.”

Motorist Tony Greenfield.

Oxfordshire County Council invested about £8m to improvethe Kennington and Hinksey Hill interchanges.

Drivers faced delays for months as the Kennington roundabout was converted to hamburger-style, with the work finished in December.

County council spokesman Dominic Llewellyn-Jones responded that alignment levels were determined by the “geometry of existing carriageways”.

He said: “Altering these levels to achieve a completely smooth alignment through the junction would have required all the other subway structures around the roundabout to be modified/rebuilt and the new structure/embankments raised, substantially increasing the work required for the new junction, and consequential cost, duration and disruption.

“Prior to the work starting on the roundabout, the contours of the road already had a slight dip toward the centre. This improves drainage on the road surface and helps prevent standing water.

“We welcome comments from members of the public and these have been passed onto the audit team. They will consider this aspect of the scheme and make any recommendations needed to ensure adequate road safety.”

Asked what the cost would have been to level the dip, Mr Llewellyn Jones said that the council no longer had the information. He refused to say if it had lost it or thrown it away.

Motorcyclist and salesman at Harley Davidson in Cowley Jonny Mallion has driven his motorbike through the dip on numerous occasions.

The 23-year-old from Abingdon said: “I can see how it might cause a problem for an inexperienced rider if they went too fast. They could go into the further side kerb if they are going well over the speed limit.”

Daily user of the roundabout and Oxford-based surveyor Steven Greenfield felt the lanes were too narrow and had witnessed close shaves. The 44-year-old said: “I have had to take evasive action on a few occasions.”