WORK will begin on Monday to improve the safety of a York junction that city leaders say has become an accident blackspot.

The crossroad where Manor Heath joins Hallcroft Lane and Hagg Lane has been the site of several collisions in the last few years, including a fatal accident in August last year.

Many collisions at the junction are ‘overshoot’ accidents, where drivers on Hallcroft Lane may not realise they are approaching a crossroad junction and fail to give way to traffic on Manor Heath, says City of York Council.

Last September, 85-year-old Doreen Myers from Leeds died following an accident at the junction the previous month.

City of York Council will carry out the work from Monday. The Hallcroft Lane section of the junction will be widened to allow a pedestrian island to be included. Coloured surfacing will be used, and signage will also be improved.

The work is scheduled to take three weeks. Work will take place from Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 4.30pm during the first two weeks. Traffic will be managed by stop and go signals, with no alterations to the bus service.

During the third week, while resurfacing is taking place, Hallcroft Lane will be fully closed during the day from the Horseman Lane junction to the Manor Heath junction.

An alternative route for diverted traffic via Horseman Lane will be signed.

Residents in the area will have pedestrian access to their properties but vehicle access will only be possible when it is safe to do so. They are being urged to find alternative parking arrangements for the duration of the surfacing works.