Stafford town centre roadworks expected to end

The temporary roadworks on the A513 Beaconside which have been in place for a month were schedules to be removed today.

Problems came to a head last weekend when drivers suffered gridlock in the area as Top Gear presenters James May and Richard Hammond came to town.

Thousands of bike enthusiasts descended down the road from the M6 travelling to the Classic Motorcycle Show at Staffordshire County Showground just up the road on the A518.

The County Council installed the lights on the junction with Dyson Way, the entrance to Staffordshire Technology Park, on Wednesday, April 8, and advised that delays would be likely.

The authority was not able to clarify what works have been taking place at the site during the last month and whether they were aware of the traffic problems over the weekend.

But it is likely they are linked to works which originally started on March 9 to make safety improvements at the Dyson Way junction. They were due to take around six weeks but Staffordshire County Council's website lists them as still 'In Progress'.

The lights were scheduled to be removed today although the council could not confirm for sure if they would be taken down given how long the original works have dragged on for already.

Motorcycle enthusiasts and Top Gear fans had flocked to the showground to see the two presenters May and Hammond who up until recently had fronted the mammothly popular BBC show which has been put on ice in the wake of co-presenter Jeremy Clarkson's suspension from the Beeb.

The duo were in attendance to see 12 of their own bikes put up for auction with Hammond's 2010 Norton Commando selling for the most out of the pair's collection at £15,180.

Show organisers boast that the Stafford show is the world's busiest classic bike event.

Despite the delays on-route this year's auction proved to be a major success.

The top selling bike was a 1939 Vincent which fetched £275,900 while overall sales revved up to a record £2.2million.

The event's exhibition manger, Nick Mowbray, said: "The record auction results were the culmination of one of the most successful ever Stafford weekends as the show cemented its status as the world's biggest classic bike event.

"All trade plots were sold out, there was unprecedented interest from clubs and private collectors to display machines and we saw increased attendance levels. It all bodes well for our next outing to Stafford in October."