Via Gellia: Route to close for speed camera preparation works

Popular tourist route to close for speed camera work Phased closures of a busy Derbyshire road are being planned so new safety measures can be installed.

Derbyshire County Council has announced six weeks of work on the A5012 between Cromford and Newhaven, starting on Monday, 30 September.

The nine-mile (14.4km) route, known as the Via Gellia, has been earmarked for new average speed cameras and some alterations to speed limits.

The authority said the "narrow and twisty nature" of the road meant the closures were needed to protect its workers.

The closures will happen daily between 08:00 and 16:00 BST, so that safety measures can be installed, drains cleared and preparations made for the installation of average speed cameras next year.

The work will start on Monday on the stretch from Newhaven to Grangemill.

From 7 October, the work will take place from Grangemill to Ryder Junction, then from 14 October from Ryder Junction to Bonsall.

From 21 October, work will take place again between Newhaven and Grangemill.

Then the road from Bonsall to Cromford will close from 28 October.

The council said the dates of the phased closure may vary subject to the weather.

Enforcement action Once the £3m project has been completed, the speed limit on parts of the road will be reduced.

Engineers said the work would also improve drainage to aid braking distances and a tidying of signs would reduce visual clutter.

The county council said there had been 16 serious crashes and 35 "slight" crashes on the route between the end of February 2019 and February 2024.

It said 19 serious casualties had been reported over that period.

The introduction of similar measures on the A537 "Cat and Fiddle" road near Buxton had reduced the number of people injured in road collisions by about 90%, the council said in 2023.

A government fund, aimed at making the 50 highest risk roads in England safer, will pay for the project.

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