Sometimes you come across a really ridiculous situation that is obviously an unintended consequence of either good intentions, or what some might call, the jobs worth syndrome.

This one, I spotted on my way back from Peterborough today, might also fall under that infamous term, ‘elf and safety’. Driving through Deeping St Nicholas, my wife and I were delayed by a set of temporary traffic lights. These lights were protecting yet another ‘ol in the road’, or more accurately, a hole in the footpath. This hole, bereft of a single workman, as is often the case, prevented any pedestrian from passing along the footpath, requiring them to take to roadway itself.

The road through DSN is always very busy, despite the recently opened new A16 to Peterborough. It would therefore be extremely dangerous for pedestrians to walk in the road, so the traffic lights and their associated road barriers are in place to give pedestrians safe passage on the roadway – and here comes the ridiculous bit.

As you approach the site there are warning signs, informing drivers of the partial road blockage and the traffic lights. In order to keep them out of the traffic flow, these signs are on the footpath and are so large, there is no room for anybody to get past them, without walking in the road! So, we have a set of lights and barriers placed in the road to allow pedestrians to walk in the road safely, because there’s a hole in the footpath. Meanwhile, some 5 and 10 metres to either side, we have a set of roadworks signs, placed on the same footpath, that force pedestrians to walk in the road to get past them! Like I said, ridiculous!