AFTER three deaths, a petition of more than 2,000 signatures, numerous accidents and repeated calls for its change the Wiltshire Council have opened a review into the notorious A350 Lacock junction.

The review, expected to come out in September this year, will look into the viability of introducing a filter lane for turning right into Lacock for those travelling northbound towards Chippenham.

The junction has for years been plagued by accidents, with two people being killed along it in the past six months.

Some have criticised the county council as having waited too long and believe the review is overdue and should have come far sooner.

Wiltshire councillor Jon Hubbard said: “It is a dangerous junction and I myself signed a petition to get that junction changed.

“The review in my view is grossly overdue. The real problem comes for those travelling from Melksham to Chippenham.

“When coming into the junction there is a stretch of about 100 yards of what is seemingly a dual carriageway, which then quickly becomes a single lane.

“You tend to find people in the right hand lane then race ahead to try to overtake you as the lanes merge into one again.

“There is no doubt in my mind that this junction is in urgent need of review.”

In a horrific head-on crash with a lorry in December last year Lynette Perkins, 49, was killed as she travelled northbound along the crossroad.

Just three months later Darren Honeyball, 40, was also killed when his BMW collided with a Fiat Punto along the same stretch of road but travelling south towards Melksham.

A Wiltshire Council spokesperson said: “We have been considering the options to improve this junction on this key route and hope to implement our scheme by September.

"This will follow the ongoing major gas main diversion works currently being carried out at the same location.”

In a previous statement last February, Wiltshire Council cabinet member for highways and transport, Philip Whitehead, said: “We are doing a review at the moment of that stretch of road.

“I think the fact that we are looking into it says that we may have some concerns about it.

“The volume of traffic through the junction has increased considerably. I personally do not think there are any problems with it.

“Regarding the death, if the coroner’s report tells us that we need to look at the junction we will do something but we will not react prior to the report.”