DoE accused: coach chaos on Monday? Lake District
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the Palace ceremony even though their coach is not carrying a permit.
At the moment tours start at Lambeth Palace and then visit either St Paul's Cathedral or Westminster Abbey; thereafter the coaches have been converging on Green Park. Mr Stevens suggests that they will all now make for Westminster, drop their passengers at the Abbey and arrange to return for them at 12 noon.
This will mean that after the Abbey visit the passengers will either have to walk along Birdcage Walk or the Mall to the Palace. It could also mean that up to 100 coaches will be circulating in the Parliament Square and Westminster area.
Mr Stevens also points out that other drivers will attempt to get closer to the Palace and drop their passengers in one of the side streets in Victoria. "I can only see chaos developing," he added.
Mr G. Ridley, chief engineer, traffic, at the GL, expressed fears that congestion in the peripheral roads could result. He said that the scheme should be treated as an experiment before any rigid conclusions were reached.
One of the main points of congestion on Monday, when London's traffic is at its heaviest, could well be Admiralty Arch. It was here that drivers purchased tickets for all of the Royal Parks in the past. This is no longer the case and in its official notice announcing the permit scheme the Royal Parks Division did not state where these tickets were obtainable. They are now available at the Parks Superintendent's Office, The Store Yard, Hyde Park, London W2.
Applications for permits for St James's and Green Park during the restricted period should be made to the Department of the Environment, Royal Parks Division, 5th Floor, Gaywood House, 29 Great Peter Street, London SW1P 3LW (tel 01-222 7580). Applications should be accompanied by the 50p remittance which will be returned if all of the permits have already been allocated. • Mr Keith Speed, Under-Secretary ol State at the Department of thc Environment, has informed Westmorland's MP, Mr Michael Jopling, of a proposed meeting of statutory bodies to consider banning heavy vehicles from the main roac through the heart of Lakeland, the A591 Kendal-Keswick route.
Replying to an inquiry about thc possibility of such a ban, which is beirq advocated in Cumberland and Westmor land, Mr Speed has stated: "I have beer looking into the whole question of traffic management in and around the Lake District, followMg the A66 improvemem decision, and have concluded that the Department should take the initiative by calling a meeting of the statutory bodie; principally concerned".
The Regional Director at Newcastle is accordingly invited to a meeting of repre sentatives from the Cumberland, West morland and Lancashire county highway authorities, Lake District Planning Board and Countryside Commission.