Some motorists face longer route to city hospital under A38 proposals

The city council has said it wants to introduce a series of measures across the city centre over the next couple of years as Brum’s centre is transformed into an “attractive place to work and visit”.

If they go ahead, the plans would leave the A38’s Dartmouth Circus-Lancaster Circus junctions, to the north of the city centre, and the Holloway Circus-Belgrave Interchange, to the south, as the only two locations where drivers heading to the city centre could both enter and leave the route.

Three key junctions between those points would be restricted depending on whether motorists wanted to join or leave the A38.

The council has said its aim is to cut the number of private cars using local roads in the city centre, instead aiming to increase use of the city’s ring road.

It acknowledged a route to a particular destination may change but added that “all locations will remain accessible”.

The proposed changes have split opinion on social media and some residents have voiced concern over whether the changes would impact journeys to a particularly important destination in the city centre.

“How on earth are they proposing people get to the Children’s Hospital?” Jane Fitzgerald wrote on Facebook. “It is difficult enough as it is for patients and staff and the public transport links from the south side of Birmingham are awful.”

“If you live in the south side of Birmingham, how are we supposed to get to the Children’s Hospital in an emergency?” Gemma ‘Bancroft’ Moore added.

The proposals do mean that drivers travelling northbound from the south of the city would not be able to exit the A38 via Lancaster Circus to get to the hospital as they can currently.

Instead their route to the Loveday Street and main entrance drop off locations would be as follows: A4540 Ring Road, A47 Jennens Road, Park Street, Masshouse Lane, Moor Street Queensway, James Watt Queensway, Dale End, Newton Street, Corporation Street and Steelhouse Lane.

It will also still be possible to exit the A38 further north at Dartmouth Circus under the proposals and at Lancaster Circus (Corporation Street) for southbound traffic.

Motorists would also be able to access the Waterfall House drop off area on Whittall Street via St Chads and Snow Hill Queensway.

“Under the proposals, private vehicle access will be maintained to all parts of the city but the route may change,” a spokesperson for Birmingham City Council said.

“Access and egress routes to and from the car parks listed on the Birmingham Children’s Hospital website are shown in the ‘summary of key proposals and signed routes’ section of the consultation page.

“The proposals will help prioritise public transport and active travel, while providing more efficient access for all by creating a simplified road network with a more balanced use of road space across all modes of transport.”

The council has previously argued that it was “essential” that it freed up space previously allocated to private vehicles amid the city centre’s transformation.

“Reducing miles travelled by car will improve air quality and encourage greater use of active travel,” an online consultation on the new proposals says.

“We understand the city needs to keep moving and efficient access is essential to all”.

The council said the new proposed measures would lead to greater use of the ring road for private vehicle trips and a reduction of trips on local roads in the city centre.

It said they would also complete the ‘movement and access arrangement’ which includes six traffic management areas: Jewellery Quarter, Knowledge Quarter, Eastside, Southside, Westside South and Westside North.

“Private vehicles will be able to enter each area from the ring road only,” the consultation page said.

“Private vehicles will not be able to travel directly between the different areas but public transport and active travel modes will be able to.

“This means the route to a particular destination might change slightly, but all locations will remain accessible”.

Residents have until November 18 to respond to the new consultation. It can be found on the birmingham Be heard website here.