Busy Isle of Wight junction temporary lights to be removed

The permanent set of lights at Downend were damaged in a hit-and-run incident during the early hours of January 10 and are yet to be fixed.

Island Roads said the system that controls the sequencing of the Downend lights and the unit that supplies power to the site were 'damaged beyond repair' following the collision.  

Temporary traffic lights at the Downend junction (Image: Contributions)

A spokesperson described the collision as ‘significant’ and suggested it ‘could have put lives at risk, as well as causing subsequent inconvenience to many motorists’.

The firm has previously apologised for the disruption, stating it was awaiting specialist equipment and expertise to carry out the repairs.

Read more: When will temporary traffic lights at busy junction be removed?

Since the hit-and-run incident, temporary traffic lights have been in place, prompting tailbacks.

Tailbacks at Downend in January (Image: Contributions)

On January 24, there was a fault with the temporary set, leading to even longer delays, as previously reported.

Today (Thursday, February 22), Island Roads confirmed power supply has been restored, and specialist teams will carry out the repairs next month.

A spokesperson told the County Press: “We are pleased to say that we have restored the power supply to this location and the specialist teams are scheduled to visit on March 11–12 to replace the controller so the permanent lights can be brought back into use well ahead of Easter. 

“The work could not be done sooner as we have had to wait on the arrival of specialist parts and also the availability of crews to make this repair.”