Resident calls for road markings at junction after crashes

A Kingsbridge resident has called for road markings at the junction of Coronation Road and Henacre Road after she had suffered two crashes. 

Nyk Redburne took to social media to see if other people had had similar experiences at the junction of Henacre Road and Coronation Road in Kingsbridge after she had her car written off there twice, once on 27 October 2025 and then again on 4 February 2026.  

Nyk said: "I've had a couple of very near misses in the past and since too. I have also witnessed several vehicles flying out of the junction without due care or knowledge that it is not their right of way."

The aftermath of one of Nyk's crashes with her sign-written car - contributed

She posted in the Kingsbridge Area Community Group on Facebook to ask if anyone else had had issues at that junction. Some people commented that their used to be a roundabout or island with a lamp-post on it at the lower Henacre junction, which was removed because "people kept hitting it". 

The post got 18 reactions and one commenter mentioned that they had seen "two or three crashes" when they lived there. 

The aftermath of the other of Nyk's crashes - contributed 

Nyk explained her crashes, saing: "In both of mine, the third party was travelling along the bottom of Henacre Road from the Ilton way end and did not stop of give way at the junction with Coronation Road.  

"They both said they thought that straight on was the exit from the estate and, therefore, their right of way. They both said they didn't see the junction, but you can clearly see it if you take a little more care than they did.  

"Both my cars were written off and it has left me with severe travel anxiety, on going injuries and psychological damage that I think will take me a very long time to recover from.

"It has impacted my family life and my business.  My shop, The Cow Jumped Over the Balloon, in Church Street flooded on 27 January and I was in the process of moving it all home to temporarily trade from there until the shop was usable again. Because of the second crash and the impact that had on my already fragile mental health (from the first crash), I made the very difficult decision to not return to the shop and allow my daughter, Abbie (Bellissimo Nails and Beauty) to take over the whole shop (we shared beforehand)."

She also shared other incidents that had been shared with her: 

• Near‑miss involving a friend and her young family - a food delivery van drove straight across the crossing at speed. My friend and her children narrowly avoided being hit because they saw the van coming and stopped before crossing.
• CCTV‑recorded collision - I have been sent CCTV footage showing a vehicle colliding with a South Hams District Council recycling lorry travelling down the hill back in 2022. Although the vehicle appeared to be speeding, the driver clearly did not see the junction or realise they did not have right of way.
• Stolen‑car crash through a residential wall - shortly after my second crash, a local young person in a stolen car drove straight across the junction and crashed through the wall of the house on the left‑hand corner of the Henacre/Skelmersdale Close side.

Hollie Worthington, who was the adult in the above near miss with the delivery van, has started a petition to try and improve the safety at the junction. If you would like to see it and/or sign it, find it here: https://www.change.org/p/improve-safety-at-henacre-hill-junctions 

To make things more confusing, Nyk received a statement from Devon Highways that does not match the official statement we received from Devon County Council. 

A Devon County Council spokesperson told us: “We have no record of any collisions at the junction of Henacre Road and Coronation Road, and there are currently no plans to alter the junction or install road markings.

“Many modern residential developments are designed to encourage lower vehicle speeds and greater awareness of other road users.
 
“Research and industry practice show that drivers tend to proceed more cautiously where the road environment appears less formal, helping to create safer residential streets.

“Unmarked junctions can encourage motorists to slow down, observe their surroundings and carefully negotiate priority with other road users.”

But Nyk said when she reported the problems and asked for more road markings, she got the response: "Thank you for bringing the condition of the non-safety road marking at the above location to our attention. We will process and issue the works order to remark the road marking as soon as resources allow.

"This may not be for quite a while but be assured the request will be recorded and actioned at the earliest opportunity. Thank you for your patience."

Do you think there needs to be road markings on this junction?