Just how did people manage before The Furry bypass road was built in Helston?

The three-day closure in one direction at the end of last week, for resurfacing, showed just how reliant the town has become on it and how chaotic the centre would be if it was no longer there.

Attempting to get from Penzance Road to the Meneage Road end of town suddenly required route planning with military precision by motorists not wishing to get stuck in agonisingly slow queues.

The main problem was, unsurprisingly, the traffic lights in Coinagehall Street. The sheer volume of traffic all trying to get from the south to the north meant that queues stretched along the entire street, down Monument Road, around the roundabout and back along Penzance Road at certain times of the day.

Those trying to bypass at least part of the congestion, by taking a sneaky shortcut through St John's and Nettles Hill, found this backfired as they met cars attempting to do the same in the opposite direction.

And this was just with one lane closure.

Let us hope that when Cornwall Council carries out its promised public consultation as part of a “transport strategy” for the town, such congestion problems are taken into due consideration when it comes to any proposed changes to traffic and transport in Helston.