A SERIES of road closures on the A30 has caused traffic chaos on its surrounding roads.

At the start of August, National Highways revealed a swathe of upgrades it plans to carry out along the A30. These six-month works are being undertaken in an effort to improve the safety of the road.

Since September 5 (until September 11), the A30 has been fully closed in both directions between Five Lanes and Kennards House between 9pm and 6am.

Following this, from September 7, the route will be limited to a single lane in each direction during the day, with 40mph and 50mph speed limits in place. National Highways has stated that this single lane closure is set to remain in place until March 2027.

As a result of these closures, drivers have been forced to follow diversions or seek alternative routes in order to complete their journeys. However, many drivers have complained that diversions have not been adequately signposted or poorly chosen. Due to these issues, the region’s B-roads saw traffic chaos, as cars, vans, caravans, and even ambulances attempted to navigate these back roads in an effort to return to their journeys.

Cornwall Councillor Adrian Parsons (Altarnun and Stoke Climsland) was among those who witnessed the issues firsthand, saying that local residents were left to deal withe consequences of the issues.

Speaking to us, he said: “This past weekend has seen the start of the A30 safety improvements in the Plusha area. During the day, we have seen the dual carriageway reduced to a single lane, causing heavy congestion and long tailbacks.

“However, the greatest issues have occurred at night, when the road is closed from 9pm until 6am. We have seen absolute chaos on our rural roads around Trevague, Trevell, Trewint, Five Lanes, Altarnun and Lewannick. Lanes have become gridlocked, with all manner of vehicles trying to find the quickest route to their destination, leaving local residents to deal with the consequences.”

The councillor has said that concerns have been raised and that a dialogue is being had with National Highways.

He continued:“I have raised my concerns with our Cornwall Council Highways team, who are in dialogue with National Highways to address the situation. It is important that diversion signage is appropriate and that we prevent excessive volumes of traffic from being directed onto our narrow rural lanes.”

“In previous meetings, we warned of these potential issues, and, to date, it appears that our concerns were not fully taken on board.

The issues have been so bad, that even the area’s MP has written to National Highways to request a review of diversion signage and route choices.

Ben Maguire, MP for North Cornwall explained: "Following the first two overnight closures of the A30 between Altarnun and Launceston, I've written to the Regional Director of National Highways requesting an urgent review of the signage and routes chosen.

"Whilst these road safety improvements are important, any overnight diversions need to be clearly marked and considerate of the capacity of the local road network.”