So, there’s apparently “Still no solution to Legoland Traffic Chaos”. That was the headline in the Observer last week following a discussion on Legoland traffic at the RBWM Highways Panel. And that despite months of deliberation by the Council.

Traffic coming your way

At that meeting the routing of Legoland traffic this season was disclosed following the traffic trials held last season.

If you recall, during the trials last season traffic from the West and the North was diverted to avoid the Clarence Road roundabout.

This season traffic from the West, North and East will all be funnelled down the Royal Windsor Way to the Clarence Road roundabout. Permanent signs are now in place to direct such traffic along Goslar Way to avoid Imperial Road but we all know how many drivers obey their Satnavs and will continue down Imperial Road.

“all residents are equal but some are more equal than others”

An unequal distribution of traffic

One of the aims of the trials was to share the burden of Legoland traffic, with Old windsor and Bray playing their part.

Old Windsor have agreed to take the clockwise M25 traffic but have warned that this might not be possible if traffic generated by the Magna Carta celebrations causes congestion, in which case we can only assume Legoland traffic will be diverted onto the M4 and approach Windsor via the Royal Windsor Way.

However Bray are not to take any Legoland traffic!

What was the point of a trial through Bray if there was never a chance of traffic being routed that way?

Is it a case of “all residents are equal but some are more equal than others“? – to misquote George Orwell’s Animal Farm

Note from editor: You wonder why Bray will not take its fair share of traffic. How ironic that we celebrate 800 years of Democracy this summer!

Queues and pollution

So, where does that leave us?   The Royal Windsor Way will be chock-a-block with the detrimental impact on local businesses,.   Clarence Road roundabout will be chaotic with road safety issues, with pollution levels of the harmful Nitrogen Dioxide already above permitted levels, with these increases in trafffic they can only rise.   Imperial Road will once again suffer queues and the junction with St Leonards Road is another area of dangerously high Nitrogen Dioxide levels.

Problems and solutions

Nothing in the trials addressed the problem of traffic exiting Legoland, although that was part of the brief.   At a separate set of meetings a suggestion was made of an exit-only route from St Leonard’s Hill into Hemwood Road.  However, as this involves the purchase of land (could this be from residents?) this option looks costly, further investigation is required so we’re unlikely to see any progress  in the short term.

Appalling conclusions

So it seems pretty obvious that this Season the volume of Legoland traffic in Windsor will be far higher than during the trials.  All that disruption and effort last year during the trials for what?

A lack of courtesy?

And on top of that the RBWM haven’t had the courtesy to inform all Windsor Councillors of this decision.  We found out because a member, Helen Price, attended the Panel meeting.