Sunday, December 02, 2007
Road to nowhere
Hundreds of miles of roads need to be built in Wales to avoid gridlock by the middle of the century. Who says so? The RAC say so. They believe that the our roads could grind to a halt by 2041 if millions of pounds more are not invested in Britain’s ageing infrastructure. Well, it is not as if they do not have an interest is it?
The Wales on Sunday report that more than 100 miles of motorway – 56 per cent more – alone will need to be built here by 2041, while across the whole of Wales 650 miles of extra roads will be required. This is because in Wales it is forecast that car journeys will increase by as much as 22 per cent, not least because the population is expected to expand by 5.2 per cent to 3.1 million.
This hardly squares with the Assembly Government's commitment to sustainability, even if we did have the money to deliver on such a programme. The problem is that, as has been evidenced all too often in the past, the rate of growth in car journeys increases exponentially to fill the available road space. In other words, even new roads will become congested in a short period of time and that will spark demand for further building work. It is a circle we need to break out of.
That is not to say that I am opposed to all road building works. There is clearly a case to build by-passes and new roads that will relieve pressure on existing communities, serve new estates, take local traffic off trunk roads and iron out accident black spots, but the argument for new motorways and dual carriageways, such as that planned for the M4 around Newport, driving through five SSSIs, has long reached its sell-by date.
We need to find ways to get cars off the road. Efficient, effective and modern public transport is one way, designing pedestrian-friendly communities another. If we are to invest huge sums of money into the transport system then that is the way to go, not building more and more roads to meet the demand of an ever-increasing number of vehicle movements.
The Wales on Sunday report that more than 100 miles of motorway – 56 per cent more – alone will need to be built here by 2041, while across the whole of Wales 650 miles of extra roads will be required. This is because in Wales it is forecast that car journeys will increase by as much as 22 per cent, not least because the population is expected to expand by 5.2 per cent to 3.1 million.
This hardly squares with the Assembly Government's commitment to sustainability, even if we did have the money to deliver on such a programme. The problem is that, as has been evidenced all too often in the past, the rate of growth in car journeys increases exponentially to fill the available road space. In other words, even new roads will become congested in a short period of time and that will spark demand for further building work. It is a circle we need to break out of.
That is not to say that I am opposed to all road building works. There is clearly a case to build by-passes and new roads that will relieve pressure on existing communities, serve new estates, take local traffic off trunk roads and iron out accident black spots, but the argument for new motorways and dual carriageways, such as that planned for the M4 around Newport, driving through five SSSIs, has long reached its sell-by date.
We need to find ways to get cars off the road. Efficient, effective and modern public transport is one way, designing pedestrian-friendly communities another. If we are to invest huge sums of money into the transport system then that is the way to go, not building more and more roads to meet the demand of an ever-increasing number of vehicle movements.
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is it too simplistic to suggest that we could make a huge step forward if we move the average working week to 4 days? Most people are contracted to do 35-37 hours week, which could in many cases be spread over 4 days, rather than 5 as is usual now.
I know that not everyone could benefit, but in simple terms it would reduce traffic by up to 20%, cut petrol use too, and contribute to improved work-life balances for many.
And no, it doesn't mean that our places of work will be ghost towns every Friday - I've tried this where I work, and there's been no touble sorting cover etc.
I know that not everyone could benefit, but in simple terms it would reduce traffic by up to 20%, cut petrol use too, and contribute to improved work-life balances for many.
And no, it doesn't mean that our places of work will be ghost towns every Friday - I've tried this where I work, and there's been no touble sorting cover etc.
# posted by 
: 12:45 PM
: 12:45 PM
As far as Swansea's concerned I've always thought expanding upon the existing cycling lanes (if they can be called such) would be a fantastic idea. I love cycling along the front and around Singleton area just because cyclists are catered for and don't have to risk the roads.
Personally I'd cycle a lot more if other areas of Swansea had similar cycle lanes. I find myself reluctant to cycle to work simply because I'm worried about cycling on the roads with frankly inconsiderate drivers and I know that this discourages a great number of people.
I think it's a shame that with all the road works around Swansea city centre at the minute nobody thought it a good idea to include cycle lanes.
A Swansea Blog
KS Rees
Personally I'd cycle a lot more if other areas of Swansea had similar cycle lanes. I find myself reluctant to cycle to work simply because I'm worried about cycling on the roads with frankly inconsiderate drivers and I know that this discourages a great number of people.
I think it's a shame that with all the road works around Swansea city centre at the minute nobody thought it a good idea to include cycle lanes.
A Swansea Blog
KS Rees
"There is clearly a case to build by-passes and new roads that will relieve pressure on existing communities, serve new estates, take local traffic off trunk roads and iron out accident black spots"
Aren't you contradicting yourself? Most traffic consists of cars making short journeys. Building new roads leads to more people using their cars, and in-turn incresaing pressure for another new road to be built (as you seem to acknowledge). Shouldn't we be looking at ways of getting people out of cars? You seem to accept the case against building new roads, unless it would make a good campaign for the next Focus leaflet.
Aren't you contradicting yourself? Most traffic consists of cars making short journeys. Building new roads leads to more people using their cars, and in-turn incresaing pressure for another new road to be built (as you seem to acknowledge). Shouldn't we be looking at ways of getting people out of cars? You seem to accept the case against building new roads, unless it would make a good campaign for the next Focus leaflet.
# posted by : 7:31 PM
: 7:31 PM
All the new bus lanes in Swansea are available to be used by taxis and bicycles.
I agree that a lot of car trips involve short journeys, hence my appeal for pedestrian friendly communities. However, by-passes and roads to relieve pressure on local communities tend to serve long distance traffic especially on the A470, A483 and other major routes. Equally if new estates are being built then there needs to be adequate access. It is commonsense to take local traffic off trunk roads and to tackle accident black spots.
I think you will find that even Friends of the Earth would support that approach. It is a sensible use of scarce resources. Not something that can be said for new roads such as the M4 extension.
I agree that a lot of car trips involve short journeys, hence my appeal for pedestrian friendly communities. However, by-passes and roads to relieve pressure on local communities tend to serve long distance traffic especially on the A470, A483 and other major routes. Equally if new estates are being built then there needs to be adequate access. It is commonsense to take local traffic off trunk roads and to tackle accident black spots.
I think you will find that even Friends of the Earth would support that approach. It is a sensible use of scarce resources. Not something that can be said for new roads such as the M4 extension.
I don't understand how new roads "relieve pressure on local communities". New roads lead to more traffic : local and long-distance. We have decades of experience of 'predict and provide' to illustrate that. I agree with your position on the M4, but follow the logic of you own argument. New roads do not provide 'relief' from congestion.
# posted by : 10:05 PM
: 10:05 PM
Obviously this is my fault for not expressing myself clearly.Put in simple English the sentence you quote is talking about by-passes to relieve pressure on existing communities and new roads to new estates. For example the proposed housing development on the eastern bank of the River Tawe in Swansea will require a new access road to serve it. I think that can be justified.
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