'Confusing' new cycle lane at road junction slammed by furious locals - who have described it as 'a bit of a pain'

As the smell of freshly laid tarmac fills the air, a woman in a car pulls up to the traffic lights at a junction in Bury which has been redesigned specifically with cyclists and pedestrians in mind.

Rolling down her windows as the sound of Rihanna pulsates out from her car speakers, she looks directly at a construction worker and shouts “this is a total waste of taxpayers' money!" in his direction before driving off. He looks bemused, but carries on with tarmacking the road as if it's something he's already heard a few times before.

Announced early last year, A56 Manchester Road and A58 Jubilee Way near Bury Town Hall have been revamped as a CYCLOPS (Cycle Optimised Protected Signals) junction - with three give way points, six entrances and a mini set of traffic lights for cyclists.

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The layout, which was built using part of a £1mil public fund, is meant to "separate pedestrians and cyclists from motor traffic" and follows similar CYCLOPs junctions already seen in south Manchester and Bolton. While most agree a scheme to help pedestrians and cyclists is a good thing, a number of residents say they have some concerns over the finished product.

Danielle McManus lives in the area and regularly walks through the junction to get into Bury town centre. She says she likes the idea of the CYCLOPS junction, but is worried it is going to be seen by many as a short-lived ‘novelty’.

“I think it’s a good idea,” Danielle tells the M.E.N. “I’ve seen a lot of cyclists around here but the problem is that it only seems to go so far. Once they’re out of the junction, they’re back on the main road with the cars anyway.

“It seems to me that