Meeting the Public at Motorway Service Areas
In June, the Central Motorway Police Group, in conjunction with our Traffic Officer Service, will be running 'meet the public' days at Motorway Service Areas.
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Highways Agency response to CPRE report on road bypasses
Highways Agency response to Campign to Protect Rural England report on road bypasses 3 July 2006
Responding to the CPRE report today, the Highways Agency said: "We evaluate all strategic road schemes to see how well they measure up against the justification made when we planned and built them.
“All three schemes were built several years ago; since then we have significantly changed our appraisal methods. The Dept for Transport has recently issued new guidance about traffic modelling which will affect traffic forecasts. There is nothing in the CPRE report which suggests that we would have changed our view.
“More traffic than envisaged using these roads means there is less traffic on local roads which as a result are safer for people using them. Less traffic now drives through Newbury and other towns on these roads because of our road schemes. There is less pollution and disturbance along the old roads.
“The A34 Newbury bypass carried daily 8,000 heavy goods vehicles, a year after the road was opened. The number of heavy goods vehicles on other parts of the old A34 through Newbury, reduced by 84% in the year after the road opened. This is close to the 88% forecast reduction predicted when the scheme went ahead.
“The majority of schemes in the government’s targeted programme of improvements have been recommended by regional planning bodies as a result of multi-modal studies which examined the scope for public transport to solve transport problems.
“The impacts of the schemes on areas of outstanding natural beauty were assessed at the time the schemes were designed and fully discussed at the public inquiries.
“Our appraisal methods changed significantly since the three schemes cited by CPRE were assessed. Under the new approach to appraisal published in 1998 we give all key impacts including the environment equal weight with economic, community and safety benefits, before deciding whether to build a scheme.”
