SIGNIFICANT changes are set to be made to a busy junction on the A127 starting from next week, but it is not the first time the arterial road has undergone a makeover.
A £5million project to reconfigure the Bell Junction on the A127 will get underway on September 1 and is planned to continue through to next summer.
It is hoped the latest adjustments will ease congestion at pinch points and accommodate current and future traffic levels.
All of us have spent countless hours stuck in queues along the A127.
Some things never change - traffic at the junction with the A130 for Benfleet and Canvey in 1988
The road may be a dual carriageway for most of its length, but it doesn’t stop the jams forming during the morning and evening rush hours on a daily basis.
Ahead of the impending changes, we have delved into the Echo archive to show how dramatically the layout of the A127 has changed over the decades.
Beginnings - the cutting had to be made at Rayleigh Weir to allow the road to pass through
Major junctions like the Fortune of War roundabout and the Fairglen Interchange have been redesigned as surrounding areas have grown.
For instance, many of you will remember when the Fortune of War was actually a fully-functional roundabout.
When you could go all the way around - the Fortune of War roundabout in Laindon in 1985
The building of new routes, such as the A130, have also resulted in changes being made.
Despite the changes, the amount of traffic has increased as each decade passes by.
Lane closure - motorists move into a single lane due to roadworks near the Fortune of War in September 1987
The Bell Junction adjustments – which will include the removal of an ageing footbridge, installing a new pedestrian crossing and building a dedicated left-turn lane on Rochford Road - will come to fruition thanks to the South East Local Enterprise Partnership allocating £4.3million of the Department for Transport’s local growth fund towards the project.
The remainder of the £5million cost will be met through Southend Council’s capital budget.
Standing in the way of motorists - traffic being redirected at Rayleigh in 1980
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Scroll down to see more images of the A127 from years gone by.
Road to nowhere - the Fortune of War junction in 1989, before Willowfield and High Road were linked up
Of benefit to those not travelling by car - a pedestrian walkway was built over the A127 near the Fortune of War roundabout in 1988
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How times have changed - the junction of the A127 and the old A130 in 1982
Changes being made - a new overpass was built when the Fairglen Interchange was created
Fields - iconic vehicles use the A127 to drive past a rather different-looking Basildon in 1976
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