Wood: critical of DTp and dismissive of environmentalists
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FACING, AN audience made up almost entirely of staunch antiWood 1 Report campaigners, Derek Wood seemed justifiably uneasy as he informed them that the Greater London Council was to carry out further studies on the pos ibilities of a night-time ban in Lqndon (see p3).
But putting this quickly behind him, Mr Wood carried on to explain how the Wood Report had been compiled and he launched an unexpected attack on the De i partmer 't of Transport's lack of co-oper tion in supplying traffic figures.
He sa'd that the panel of the Wood Inquiry had been "crippled" by the lack of adequate data concerning through-traffic figures in London. Much informaticln on traffic figures was taken from the 1981 GLC Greater London Transportation Survey. But pra blems arose when throughitraffic figures for Lon proached the DTp for infc tion from its own survey said. "But the DTp saic would have to pay £15,0C this information.
"We were attempting to advice to a highway autho he said. "If we cannot affc pay for that information, th whom is it sold?" he asked.
Mr Wood then went c dispel some of the environ tal groups' claims of the a( tages brought about by bans. Bans by weight bra would simply result in sn distribution vehicles conge the roads, he preached tc converted.
"So I do not think that will be much debating the that lorry bans will produce ronmental benefits to any degree," he said. "The r mum environmental benefi would be gained would be
St severe full-time ban on over 7.5 tonnes."
would result in noise reIs, he explained, but he d if air pollution counts show any improvement, to the amount of general ;till on the roads.
M25 will be a significant n reducing traffic in Lon don, he said. According to his Report, hgv traffic levels will drop by 22 per cent when the motorway is complete, and through traffic will be cut by 83 per cent. "The remaining 17 per cent who will not bother to use the M25 make journeys through London at night when traffic levels are less," he said.