THE community has welcomed plans for a new roundabout on Crag Brow in Bowness-in-Windermere.

The Cumbria County Council are constructing a new layout for the roundabout which they hope will improve pedestrian safety at the junction of the A5074 and A592 as part of the roadworks.

The work began on Monday, January 10.

The roundabout has been a cause for concern by some residents due to heavy traffic, and the felling of a tree that was a potential risk to road users.

David Richardson, who lives beside where the roundabout, said: “They have begun the work now and I hope it will do some good.

“It would have been better if they left the tree up. It was about three years ago they took it away.

“Cars got faster coming down here so we hope a new layout will help.

“The only thing I don’t agree with about it is there are only two islands to cross, instead of three.

“In the early stages of the plan there were three but now there are only two. That’s the only thing I would add.”

Local resident Catherine said: “They took the tree down in the road about three years ago and since then people noticed a lot more speeding in the area.

“There’s a lot of horn beeping and it is nice to know this will slow traffic down.

“Hopefully it’ll make it safer for people.”

Westmorland Lonsdale Councillor Ben Berry, who was involved in the development of the scheme, described how the project would improve safety while also being in-keeping with the area.

He said: "It was myself and Jim Bland who were involved in the design and development of the scheme and it's exciting to see if come through.

"The area has been somewhat neglected since the tree was felled. It was a shame to see if but it kept falling on people and cars.

"It's taken time to come up with the scheme but we're happy with what's been put forward.

"Specifically, it's the crossing points that people have been asking for, for several years. It's surprisingly hard to cross without them.

"The other thing is around the finishing of the wall and on which type of stone should be used. We want to make sure it is in keeping with the world class destination, being Bowness.

"There will only be two islands to cross on but even with that people will have a safe way across.

"We also want to enhance people's parking experience. It's a big improvement to the public area.

"We are keeping on with the street car parking, as Jim and I made sure that was kept."