No Expansion of Road Programme
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I T did not follow that by building bigger and better roads that the problems of congestion and road safety would largely disappear. This was stated by Lord Lindgren, Joint Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport, when he opened the Sandiacre-Stapleford by-pass on the A52 trunk road between Nottingham and Derby last week.
"This does not follow ", he said, "as recent events in fog on the MI and M6 bear out."
However, few people would dispute the need for a bigger road programme, said Lord Lindgren. Year by year the amount devoted to road improvements had grown; in the current financial year it would be some £165m.. whilst in five years' time it would be almost £300m. " Yet even where sums as vast as this are involved, with the rapid growth in traffic, especially in towns, road congestion will be even worse at the end of the decade than it is today."
Lord Lindgren said it was clear that more roads were needed. But at the moment the country could not afford to expand the present massive programme. However, the announced programme would go ahead, including the completion of 1,000 miles of motorway by the early 1970s, he went on. " We intend to ma intam progress with the comprehensive improvement of more important trunk roads; we will deal with the worst points of congestion and danger."