A LONG-RUNNING sore point for residents in Thornlie and Canning Vale could finally be resolved in next year’s State Budget.
The roundabout at the Nicholson Road, Yale Road and Garden Street junction has been allocated $500,000 in the 2018-19 budget to improve traffic flow.
The roundabout is less than a kilometre from the Canning Vale Industrial Area and Roe Highway.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOWLocal resident Colin Stratford, who lives a few streets away from the roundabout, said entering from the Yale Road end was “like Russian Roulette.”
“You’ve got to wait until there’s a car coming from Nicholson Road, wanting to come on to Yale so they will stop the traffic and then you’ve got to take off and hope you get through,” he said.
Mr Stratford said the large amount of traffic meant anyone travelling from Garden Street had to wait a long time at the roundabout.
“In the mornings from Garden Street, that’s back-to-back like you wouldn’t believe,” he said.
“You’ve got traffic from Yale Road going straight through and Nicholson turning right.
“Getting off Garden Street is as bad, if not worse than getting on from Yale.”
Thornlie MP Chris Tallentire said installing traffic lights, which were planned for the previous upgrade but never installed, would ease congestion. “Those lights would only come on at peak time when necessary, so they’re very much demand driven and that’s the sort of thing we think should be installed at Yale, Garden and Nicholson roundabout,” he said.
In 2013, the roundabout was modified to include a slip road to allow cars travelling on Nicholson Road from Canning Vale to bypass the roundabout and continue towards Cannington.
The upgrades also included the addition of a double right turn lane from Yale Road and spiral line markings to address the large volume of heavy turning movements.
MORE: Voter numbers up as former State politicians enjoy mixed success in local government elections
MORE: Research shows screen time is wrecking teenagers’ sleep
MORE: Coronial inquest examines Perth toddler’s drawer death