Watch more of our videos on Shots!
and live on Freeview channel 276

Drivers from all over the city have expressed their views about traffic lights on roundabouts.

And they insist they do NOT want them as the traffic flow works better without them.

Their outburst has come this week on social media as Milton Keynes City Council announced it is beginning costly repairs of the faulty traffic lights on the large Abbey Hill roundabout.

Drivers in Milton Keynes are questioning why traffic lights are necessary on roundabouts

Last month the lights were switched off for safety reasons as they were not working properly.

Despite several attempted repairs, the lights were still failing. But the equipment was “at the end of its operational life” and replacement parts were no longer manufactured, said the council.

This means a complete replacement of the system, including signal heads, cables, control boxes and other apparatus, is now necessary.

“Until this happens it is not safe to turn on the existing lights that remain operational and drivers are reminded to drive with due care and attention when on and approaching the roundabout,” said a council spokesperson.

Repairs on the traffic lights at Abbey Hill roundabout begin this week

The repairs have started today (Tuesday), and are expected to take four to six weeks to complete.

The council made the announcement this morning on its Facebook page and it prompted dozens of responses from members of the public asking why the traffic lights were necessary in the first place.

One driver posted: “Money would be better spent removing the lights completely and letting the traffic flow - just as roundabouts were designed to do.”

Another wrote: “This roundabout works so much better without lights. Waste of money replacing them.”

A third declared: “I hated being stopped by the lights on the roundabout just before going onto the A5... I never understood why you would be forced to stop on a roundabout and blocking the way onto a dual carriageway, creating a build up of traffic and a potential accident.”

Council officials say the traffic signals are required due to the speed and volume of traffic moving through this roundabout throughout the day.

"Our priority is to keep the highway safe for all users so this roundabout must be signalised,” said the spokesperson.

'We don't need traffic lights on our roundabouts' say drivers from all over Milton Keynes