Tarmac Highways Services complete improvements to the notorious Hempnall crossroads, Norfolk

Norfolk County Council needed a solution to the problems caused by a busy and dangerous crossroads on the A140. The works programme needed to deliver an efficient new road to help unlock economic growth by cutting journey times, easing congestion and improving safety on this increasingly busy route.

Historically two thirds of the injury accidents reported on this road involved vehicles emerging from the side roads onto the A140, with the remainder being tail end collisions in traffic and single vehicle loss of control incidents.

The old junction, known locally as The Hempnall Crossroads, had a poor injury accident record, with eleven personal injury accidents in the five years up to the start of work on the new roundabout in May 2019. These accidents resulted in 15 casualties, with one categorised as serious.

Tarmac Highway Services worked with the Norfolk highways team to develop the works programme, including the traffic management, materials specification, surfacing and the installation of the new roundabout.

The new roundabout has totally transformed journeys and long detours to avoid the dangerous old crossroads are a thing of the past. Chris Starkie, Chief Executive of New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “Improving local transport links helps the economy to thrive – people can travel more reliably, goods can be transported more easily and there is less congestion.”

Peter Hyde, Highway Services director at Tarmac, said: “We’re really pleased to have been part of the team that has delivered this important project safely, on time and below budget improving both the safety and quality of local journeys.”