A sticking point holding up the installation of traffic lights at a dangerous South Shore Road junction has been created by the removal of a deal to pave a private access road belonging to landowner Auditor General Larry Dennis.

There have been six months of talks and negotiations since Works and Engineering and Housing Minister David Burch announced in January that Smith?s residents would get traffic lights and a one-way system at the busy Collectors Hill junction. However, talks between the Ministry and landowners including Gibbons Management Services Limited and Mr. Dennis about land behind South Shore Road are still ongoing.

A section of land owned by Mr. Dennis is part of the scheme to create a one-way system around the rear of Collectors Hill Apothecary.

Mr. Dennis had agreed to allow his land to be taken for the project in return for recompense and his access road being re-paved. But when the final deal was presented to him around six weeks ago he claims it omitted the re-paving agreement for his access road and instead only mentioned a re-paving of nearby AP Owen Road.

?The paving of the access road was part of the agreement for the land exchange. But then they came back and said they were taking my land, not paving my access road but paving the estate road that goes down to (Tourism Minister) Dr. Brown?s house,? said Mr. Dennis.

?That was six or eight weeks ago. If they want to pave the estate road that is fine so long as they pave mine. At the moment they want to take my property, not pave my access road but pave someone else?s.?

Mr. Dennis did not initially believe the altered deal had anything to do with what he feels was a ?planned attack? on the Office of the Auditor General when the Ministry of W&E carried out a sudden office relocation at the end of May, temporarily putting the financial watchdog office out of action, but he said he was no longer so sure the two are not connected. A Ministry spokeswoman said: ?According to Ministry officials it is anticipated the Ministry?s highway crews will soon begin the process of resurfacing the South Shore Road /Collectors Hill junction shortly. It is also anticipated that traffic sensors and lights will be placed in the area shortly.?

Stuart Innes, from landowners Gibbons Management Services Limited who are also involved in talks with W&E about the exchange of land to facilitate the scheme, said the firm was planning to correspond with W&E this week.

In January, Principal Highways Engineer Peter Havlicek said Works and Engineering aimed to complete the work by the end of March.

The Collectors Hill junction has been dangerous since 1987 when 37 collisions occurred.

The average number of accidents was one every 28 days in 1988 and 1989, one every 36 days in 1990 and one every 19 days in 1991.