Solution

The location and topography of the junction with its proximity to the village of Darnick, location of the ambulance station serving the hospital and existing infrastructure meant changing the junction to a roundabout was not feasible. It was established that controlling the flow of traffic around the junction using signals would be most effective.

Traffic lights now control the traffic turning into and out of the Borders General Hospital. They include a new hurry call system to allow ambulances to navigate the junction as quickly as possible. Both the ambulance station and hospital have a button, which prioritises the path of ambulances through the junction. The two locations require separate timings to account for the time taken for an ambulance to reach the junction from either the station or the hospital. The same buttons are used to trigger warning signs that alert other road users to the approaching ambulance.

The speed limit on this section of the A6091 has also been lowered to 50mph and the same warning signs are programmed to display a slow down message to drivers exceeding the set threshold.

Clearview Intelligence delivered the technology behind this installation. This included using our wireless vehicle detection system, which uses magnetometers to provide the vehicle detection that the traffic signals rely on. Compared to loop-based technology, this approach to vehicle detection is much quicker to install and meant the disruption at this very busy junction was kept to a minimum.

Download PDF: Borders General Hospital route safety solution