By Neil Cullen
Residents of The Fairway in Pudsey woke recently to discover that the machinery which had been nestling in a field at the end of their road had completely vanished.
A large pile of soil blocked the temporary entrance, signifying the contractors’ intention to stop using it.
All the machinery, plus the site welfare cabins, migrated in the course of one day to the new location. Road laying equipment has created a large working area to service ‘off-line’ construction of much of the new junction.
The main entrance on Bradford Road is in full operation, with finishing touches being applied to enable the footpath and cycle track to reopen (at least for the next few months).
Some traffic delays have however started.
An early task was to create a new ditch along the southern boundary, to carry an existing surface drain away from the roads. It will be partially culverted beneath the proposed pedestrian walkway to a new bus stop.
The drain has been a source of odour during hot weather, despite extensive efforts by Yorkshire Water to trace and eliminate illicit foul water connections from houses in the estates upstream. It is hoped that the new free-flowing channel will help to eliminate this nuisance.
All the machines and cabins vanished overnight to the new location 
A new ditch has been constructed along the site boundary 
Welfare cabins nestle near the Electricity Sub-Station and barriers shield the site entrance 
solid fence being constructed on Pudsey Civic Hall Car Park 
Eastbound slip road is subject to closure from time to time 
The Bellmouth road entrance receives finishing touches. 
A team of medium-sized earthmoving equipment is busying itself across the whole site, preparing the way for serious carriageway construction to start. A constant stream of lorries and machines is servicing the project through the new entrance.
Meanwhile the contractors are taking over, as planned, more than half of the Pudsey Civic Hall car park, for site offices and materials storage. A robust protective barrier is under construction, anchored by large concrete blocks.
The traffic continues, an estimated 57,000 vehicles per day using the junction. The finished job is over 18 months away, but the patience of road users is likely to be sorely tried. It is hoped the results will be worth the wait.
A panoramic view is available from the top of the grassy mound by Cote Lane to the North East of the existing roundabout.
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18 Months of disruption coming up I don’t think after that anyone on average will get anywhere quicker, total waste of money (£40m?). The money would be better spent on proper resurfacing of many of the local areas A & B and residental roads with potholes left right and centre on many of them.
Consider Armley Gyratory as example of whats to come.
a) it looks nicer (if you can say that about such a thing)
b) in my experience so far in various directions/exits its no quicker on average
c) we’re still getting disrupted with further work, what 2/3 years on from the start?.
So on Dawsons Corner add up time lost sitting in EXTRA traffic for 18-24 months due to work and lane closers, then add the fact there’s still at most only 2 lanes on the ring road and at rush hours you can’t really up the capacity even with a slightly smoother flowing roundabout/junction.
Who did the maths and working out if £40 million spend will be change anything much due to capacity limits of the dual (and in some places single) carriageway on the ring road?