Lively or dangerous? Colorful Round About Redisine Divide Village

Horrific and dangerous – or fresh and lively?

The California Cross Junction at Finchampustad, Berkshire is described as both.

A comprehensive £ 5.5m seven-maiden improvement product, double roundabout and five crossings with specific leaf designs have divided opinions among local people, with 1,400 signed a petition.

Residents have expressed concern about the cost of work, as well as the protection of a junction that does not actually follow the conference.

But how dangerous it is?

The junction consists of two rounds, each with three exit. Each exhaust has a crossing for pedestrians.

But instead of a zebra crossing with black and white stripes, there is a specific white leaf design – and instead of a round circle with a standard central island, there is an array of rainbow leaves painted on the road.

The change was performed as part of a comprehensive project for the field, including drainage work.

I moved to California Cross Junction in the afternoon in an sun on Thursday.

On the approach, it did not look like a roundabout, although it did not help with the fact that my SAT NAV app did not register it as one.

I first crossed the white leaf and run the round dizziness of the rainbow leaf without any issue, stopping a little before the second crossing, suddenly uncertain where the “Give Way” line was.

Once I was in another roundabout, I parked and tried it on foot. And, as a pedestrian, the restlessness of other road users was far more clear.

I found that I could not stand even for more than a few seconds without a driver, thinking that I was waiting for a cross and stay, even though I was not anywhere near the white leaf crossing.

Those who were waiting to cross the pedestrian crossings, they were often waiting to go beyond cars, despite the fact that their priority was.

On more than one occasions I saw that one driver failed to give way to the right, cutting the other driver – but the other driver did not get angry, as if they could not be completely sure that it was the right to their way. Was too.

In 15 minutes I went there, I saw three near-species, where drivers suddenly had to break, which appeared due to road users, did not know whose priority was.

And at the other end of the scale there were drivers who torn the junction, either intentionally or accidentally taking advantage of the hesitation of others.

This was something that pedestrian Victoria also noted.

“It goes from one extreme to another in a way, you either do not hurt people, do not stop it or everyone is stopping and no one is certainly sure who to go first,” Said.

He said that the design was “a good idea in the principle”, but in fact, what the rules were, there was a lot of confusion about what the rules were.

She had to stop because she was telling me about the near-Mis seen there because a van almost collided with a car behind us.

Another pedestrian, Samuel, agreed that the roundabout was unsafe because people did not know when their priority was.

“People don’t know when to stop, what should go first, it is terrible,” he said.

“You are standing here and you see what these people are doing and how they are running. It is dangerous.”

But other people disagreed.

Local resident Lynn told the BBC that he felt that the work was a “great reform”.

“I really don’t know what is about all the disturbances,” he said.

“I think they have done a great job.”

For transportation, Wokingham Boro Council Executive Member, Martin Elder, said that the design aims to slow down traffic and make drivers more aware of pedestrians.

From my experience, at least, it appears to do so, at least in some cases.

The council said that there was no place for a traditional junction.

Mr. Elder said that guidance from the Transport Department (DFT) said imaginative road design – for example, Sea road decoration in pole Or Multicolored spots in Colchester – “can be very safe”.

So, is the junction to live here?

Some local residents feel that it should not be at least in its current form.

“I would like to think they can make it better,” Victoria said.

“Even if they transform only white leaves into zebra crossings, everyone knows what the zebra crossing is.”

And Samuel said that he felt that it should be given a new look again.

“This is a threat,” he said.

Even with a petition against the 1,400 signature design, it seems that the junction is fixed to remain the same as it is, of course for now.

The council said that there is no plan to change it at present, but said that the roundabout will be constantly monitored.

Although it seems that the design is to live here for remote, perhaps both sides of the debate will re -interaction again before.