We have had cause to comment on and highlight in news stories the unacceptably slack state of traffic on the North Coast highway at the Priory intersection, St Ann.
For those who came in late, for months now, evening traffic heading west on the section of the North Coast Highway near Priory has been backing up because of illegal parking and illegal and dangerous use of the roadway around the small town. The roadway is still a highway and the parking going on narrows the passage into one lane, creating the bottleneck.
Last week on two afternoons traffic backed up to the traffic lights at Bravo Street, St Ann’s Bay. It’s the worse it has been since we first suggested that things could come to this.
Compounding the problem is the fact that some undisciplined motorists, particularly operators of public passenger vehicles are “undertaking the traffic” using the broad hard shoulder in the area. They are violating the Road Traffic Act, endangering pedestrians. Further, their actions make a mockery of those sitting and waiting in what is unnecessary traffic.
The police had brought things under some control, months ago, after our reporting and references to it at some police citizens meeting. The Parish Council has also marked the area around Priory as no parking. The police should not allow the law and common sense to be so spat upon.
