Severn Bridge demanded
Page 11
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DUSTRY in South Wales needs to be assured that a second Sern crossing could be built quickly and the planning should start thout delay, said Freight Transport Association director-general igh Featherstone.
Speaking to the FTA South lles Division in Cardiff, Mr atherstone said that work now the preliminary planning and sign stages for a second )ssing would halve the time wired for completion. Conuction could also start at short tice if a decision was made, he cied.
%bout 2.5m lorries cross the vern Bridge each year and so 31 repairs should be conitted as soon as possible to ng the bridge back to full
strength quickly, he said.
But this would not provide industry with sufficient capacity for future growth. Industrial movement in Wales and England depends on a high level of service from the bridge. To tell industry or prospective investors that a second crossing would take 20 years to build would give them little confidence, he said.
Planning for the second crossing should therefore start right away, Mr Featherstone said. The cost of advanced planning would be small, but it would be a good investment in industrial confidence, he said.
Mr Featherstone also spoke about the ETA campaign aimed at abolishing tolls on bridges and tunnels. Stopping goods vehicles to collect a small fee was nonsense, he said.
The situation on the Severn Bridge was particularly bad where only one penny of the average toll collected went towards reducing the bridge's debts.
The more sensible policy would be for the Government to write off the existing debts and to abolish tolls, he said.