Council removes bizarre roundabout after backlash from drivers in 'disgraceful saga'
An unconventional and much talked about road feature has disappeared overnight just days after it made headlines around the country for its very peculiar, and seemingly ineffective, design.
A diamond-shaped roundabout was recently rolled out in Sydney's southwest – much to the total bemusement of drivers in the Liverpool Council area.
Fifteenth Avenue, set to become a key arterial route to the new Western Sydney Airport, has recently seen a flurry of roadworks, with three new roundabouts installed in quick succession. Roundabouts have been added at 22nd Avenue, Craik Avenue, and the now-infamous – and short lived – diamond-shaped roundabout at 28th Avenue.
Footage captured by Yahoo on Friday at the unusual roundabout showed a number of drivers ignoring the painted lines and driving straight through the road feature.
However on Friday night, council workers quietly removed it all together.
"There is no roundabout, it's gone," a council spokesperson told Yahoo News on Saturday. "We listened to our residents. It was a design that didn't work.
"There were lots of complaints about it, so the simplest thing to do was to get rid of it."
Photos from the scene on Saturday show black paint over the previous diamond shape and a previous sign has been removed, and replaced with a regular Giveway sign.
"There was actually a mound in the middle of the intersection, so it was pulled up and the intersection has been repainted with slightly different line markings to the previous one.
"It's going back to the intersection that it was, and we've also put some improved line markings to make it a bit simpler and easier," the spokesperson said.
Local MP Nathan Hagarty was also on the scene on Saturday to mark the occasion.
"Cars are still stopping, they're not sure what to do," he said in a video posted to constituents on social media.
"But as far as I'm concerned, this is not the end of this disgraceful saga. I have had a look at the original designs and what I can say is that the design that I saw do not match what was delivered, so I think some serious questions need to be asked to Liverpool Council and the contractors... how much money has been wasted?" he said.
Related: Major road rule changes coming into effect on July 1 across Australia
For it's part, the Liverpool Council says the state government needs to upgrade the road to make it fit for purpose to handle the amount of traffic it receives.
"It's always been an awkward intersection … we've been waiting years for that road to be upgraded – it's a major thoroughfare. It's going to be the major link into the Western Sydney International Airport and it's not going to be ready in time," the council spokesperson told Yahoo.
"It hasn't been done properly and there's more pain to come unfortunately until that road is upgraded."
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Council removes bizarre roundabout after backlash from drivers in 'disgraceful saga'
An unconventional and much talked about road feature has disappeared overnight just days after it made headlines around the country for its very peculiar, and seemingly ineffective, design. A diamond-shaped roundabout was recently rolled out in Sydney's southwest – much to the total bemusement of drivers in the Liverpool Council area. Fifteenth Avenue, set to become a key arterial route to the new Western Sydney Airport, has recently seen a flurry of roadworks, with three new roundabouts installed in quick succession. Roundabouts have been added at 22nd Avenue, Craik Avenue, and the now-infamous – and short lived – diamond-shaped roundabout at 28th Avenue. Footage captured by Yahoo on Friday at the unusual roundabout showed a number of drivers ignoring the painted lines and driving straight through the road feature. However on Friday night, council workers quietly removed it all together. "There is no roundabout, it's gone," a council spokesperson told Yahoo News on Saturday. "We listened to our residents. It was a design that didn't work. "There were lots of complaints about it, so the simplest thing to do was to get rid of it." Photos from the scene on Saturday show black paint over the previous diamond shape and a previous sign has been removed, and replaced with a regular Giveway sign. "There was actually a mound in the middle of the intersection, so it was pulled up and the intersection has been repainted with slightly different line markings to the previous one. "It's going back to the intersection that it was, and we've also put some improved line markings to make it a bit simpler and easier," the spokesperson said. Local MP Nathan Hagarty was also on the scene on Saturday to mark the occasion. "Cars are still stopping, they're not sure what to do," he said in a video posted to constituents on social media. "But as far as I'm concerned, this is not the end of this disgraceful saga. I have had a look at the original designs and what I can say is that the design that I saw do not match what was delivered, so I think some serious questions need to be asked to Liverpool Council and the contractors... how much money has been wasted?" he said. Related: Major road rule changes coming into effect on July 1 across Australia For it's part, the Liverpool Council says the state government needs to upgrade the road to make it fit for purpose to handle the amount of traffic it receives. "It's always been an awkward intersection … we've been waiting years for that road to be upgraded – it's a major thoroughfare. It's going to be the major link into the Western Sydney International Airport and it's not going to be ready in time," the council spokesperson told Yahoo. "It hasn't been done properly and there's more pain to come unfortunately until that road is upgraded." Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
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