West Street Traffic Lights - You wouldn't BT leave it

Sometimes you just couldn't make it up. After 2 months of traffic misery, BT have condemned us to another 11 day delay.

It all started when the long-awaited new traffic lights were installed at the junction of West Street and Station Approach last December, replacing the light-controlled pedestrian crossing in West Street. It was widely known that this crossing was not connected to the computer controlling the other traffic signals in Epsom.

Not widely enough though, as no connecting control cable was ordered for the new traffic lights, on the assumption that there was an existing old one that could be used.

A new one was ordered from BT, which was supposed to be installed in January, by which time floods of complaints had been received by SCC Highways, councillors had been contacted and letters written to the press. Despite which, when delivery day dawned it was found that BT had decided that it wasn't urgent and they had given priority to more important work elsewhere.

However they would install it on 12 February. They did try. The installation team turned up complete with the all-important cable - only to find that the duct that the cable was supposed to go into wasn't due to be installed (by a different department) until 15 February.

The duct is there now - and the cable team are due back on 23 February. Watch this space!