Burnt Tree traffic chaos: Man charged as Birmingham New Road delays continue
A Smethwick man has been charged after traffic lights were knocked out on Birmingham New Road, causing chaos for motorists in Dudley.
Omari McCalla-Jones has been charged with failing to provide a specimen after a car crashed into the signal controller at the Burnt Tree junction on Wednesday.
The 26-year-old, of Windmill Crescent, was arrested at the scene after the smash happened near Tesco Extra at around 2.30am, knocking out the junction's traffic lights.
Temporary lights have been installed, in a move leaving drivers furious at congestion on the A4123 Birmingham New Road and A461 Birmingham Road.
Many angry motorists took to Twitter to complain about the 'ridiculous' amount of traffic that some said were caused by the poorly sequenced temporary lights.
And delays are set to continue for as long as two weeks while Dudley Council works to fix the permanent signals.
Councillor Hilary Bills, cabinet member for environmental services, said: "The traffic lights at Burnt Tree junction are out of action after a car collided with the signal controller causing significant damage.
"Temporary traffic lights are in operation but delays are anticipated while we work to resolve the issues, which may take up to two weeks.
"We would like to thank people for their patience during this time."
