THREE sets of traffic lights within about 50ft of each other on the A30 have been branded “confusing”

and an “accident waiting to happen” by concerned motorists.

Drivers on the A30 approaching the junction with Pheasant Road encounter red lights, but just ahead of them is another set of lights that show green.

These green lights are meant to apply to motorists turning onto the A30 from Pheasant Road, who have already passed yet another set of lights also showing green, but people are misreading them.

Farley resident Mick Rickman said several people he knows have nearly been involved in accidents because people on the A30 are seeing the green lights and accidentally driving through the red.

“Immediately after you turn right from Pheasant Road onto the A30, there is a set of traffic lights which are also green,” said Mr Rickman, who uses the junction once or twice a day on his way to work.

“So if you are coming down from Salisbury, just before the junction there is a set of lights which are red, and just beyond there is a second set which are green.

“People are coming hammering down on the Salisbury road and they are not registering there is a set of red traffic lights as all they are seeing are the green ones beyond that.

“There is going to be a serious, if not fatal, accident at those traffic lights - it is a very odd situation.”

A Wiltshire Council spokesman said: “We have received a small number of complaints regarding the lights here. An engineer has been on site and we are now working with the developer to look into measures in order to stop any possible confusion.” “They are not needed,” said Mr Rickman, “if you turned the second set off, what will be the problem with that?

“They are the ones that are distracting people - all they can see is the green light above the red. I am worried there will be a bad accident.”

Barry Cooper, from Pitton, has also witnessed the problem, and said he thought the second set of lights should be turned off.

“That would not then confuse the people coming from Salisbury - they would just stop and wait,” he said.

“It is a high risk for a bad accident.”