'Tram and car drivers are impatient' - Wolverhampton businesses have their say on street safety after several crashes

One of the incidents was a serious collision in which a 20-year-old man tragically died.

At around 1.35am last Tuesday (January 7), the car he was travelling in hit a wall and he was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. The cause and circumstances of the crash are being investigated.

Two other incidents on the busy A41 halted Metro services into the city last week.

On Wednesday at around 4pm a collision blocked the tram lines, temporarily stopping all services between Priestfield and Wolverhampton.

It happened near Burger King on Cullwick Street, right next to the junction where the Metro tracks join the main road, resulting in gridlocked traffic.

The second incident took place just two days later, on Friday afternoon, and involved a car and a motorbike that collided on the tram lines.

As a result all Metro services going into Wolverhampton city centre from Priestfield were halted.

Local business owners have shared their own thoughts on the safety of the road - their shops have been situated there for a number of years, and they have seen how drivers, both of cars and of West Midlands Metro trams, behave on the road.   

Amo Singh runs Nationwide Electrical and Security. His glistening lighting shop has been operating on Bilston Road, near the New Inn traffic lights, for ten years, and he has 27 years of experience in the electrical industry himself. 

The 44-year-old described tram drivers as "trigger-happy" in his experience.

"They love beeping the horn and ringing the bell," he said, "but it has been a bit crazy from both sides, the tram drivers and the car drivers. For example, if someone parks outside our shop the tram drivers will press the bell and keep it on, and you think 'ok, we get the hint'.

"At the same time, you do get cars speeding up and down here too."

He thinks the behaviour could be deterred if another set of traffic lights was installed on the road.

"They need something that will slow the traffic down a bit and make it a little bit safer," he added. "You can't really put speed bumps on a road like this.

"There needs to be some sort of deterrent to slow the vehicles down, such as a speed camera or an average speed limit. I'm sure there are many precautions that they can bring in and make it a bit safer."

Over at nearby Troy's Tasty Caribbean takeaway, co-owner Janet Samuels says there isn't a day when the trams don't sound the horn.

"The tram drivers are very impatient, they are always pushing the horn for cars to move," she said. "Okay, sometimes the cars might be slightly out of line, but the trams are constantly impatient.

"The lights might be on red and nobody can move. So I think that is one of the things they get impatient about on this road.

"Car drivers are equally as impatient. Remember, we are in a society now where drivers want to get where they are going as fast as possible, nobody likes a red light. Everyone wants to go now.

"I know that the trams can only go straight in one direction, so I understand, but car drivers are very impatient as well on this road."

Wolverhampton Council leader Stephen Simkins said: "Road safety is an important issue and one we take very seriously.

"We monitor and investigate road traffic collisions across the entire city and people can also raise concerns with our road safety team via our website.

"We encourage everyone to drive carefully along this busy road and when travelling throughout the city."

West Midlands Metro has been approached for comment.