LISTED: Angry motorists reveal the most congested and pot-holed roads in Sheffield

Sheffield motorists have named and shamed the worst roads in the city and demanded the council use part of a multi-million pound funding bid to fix them.
Penistone Road, Sheffield. Picture: GooglePenistone Road, Sheffield. Picture: Google
Penistone Road, Sheffield. Picture: Google

The authority is putting together a bid for a share of £490 million to improve the city's congested roads.

The funding package is part of the wider National Productivity Investment Fund, which is providing £1.3 billion to improve transport links across the country.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The city's crumbling roads are already undergoing an extensive improvement programme through the £2 billion Streets Ahead scheme. And this latest funding will be used more to ease congestion on city streets through such things as road widening.

Many motorists took to Facebook to vent their frustration that roads roads in the city centre quickly become grid-locked and called on the council to use part of the money to fix the problem.

Phil Vintin said: "Think there is a lot to be said for trying new technology with cameras to synchronize traffic lights. Hate waiting when there is nothing coming the other way. They could also widen several roads at junctions so that people can turn both ways at once rather than queuing in a straight line."

Matt Davies said: "Sheffield's problem is way too many traffic lights with no synchronization."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Phil Bailey posted: "I asked a guy at Sheffield Council why they hadn't put left turn filters on all the new junctions on Penistone Road and his answer was we have to think about pedestrians and cyclists. I said why? They don't pay for the roads."

Amanda Carr said: "The roads, especially in the centre, are congested because of the idiotic changes to the road system - most of which send people around in silly loops, make no sense. There are too many traffic lights in some areas and poor traffic flow."

Other drivers argued that while the money is earmarked for projects like road widening the council should also consider using part of it to further tackle the problem pot holes - as this also leads to congestion.

Jodi Booker added: "Traffic lights in Sheffield provide no traffic flow at all in some places. Pedestrian crossings as soon as you leave roundabouts cause terrible congestion but are also dangerous in my opinion, especially if you get someone who is new to those roads.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Remove pointless bus lanes or at least relax them, allowing use out of peak times on some roads. And whilst pot holes aren't necessarily directed related I would say that indirectly they do affect how people drive and so in extreme cases could impact traffic flow so fixing them is still really important."

Elissa Thompson said: "Interesting they completely resurfaced Manchester Road which I didn't even think was bad yet the roads around where I work in S5 are incredibly bad."

Keeley Williams added: "They seem to have missed the road between Bolehill and Hagg Hill (in Crookes). It is full of potholes from start to end, you can't even do 30mph with out the risk of damaging your car."

The competition for funding is open to all councils in Yorkshire and the Humber and will run until June 30.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A spokesman for Sheffield City Council said: “A previous version of this fund enabled the council to widen Penistone Road in 2014, which resulted in some significant journey time savings for drivers and bus passengers, and there are further schemes underway to improve Sheffield’s roads and transport connections.”