sorry if there is already a thread on this ,just could not find one. looking back to this year november budget ,i wanted to make a note on the road improvment plans that was brought up. i think plans in this area are good ,but feel it only benefits a short term solution. for example the idea behind the M6 so called pinch point where it meets the M5 & the motorway link to telford is a good idea ,but say give it 10-20 years & i bet it will be another pinch point. more of us in cars & more lorrys on the road . is there a better solution ? i don't know?
uk road improvement plans
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i think this responds to the november budget statment which the chanclor anounced an extra 1billion or somthing to curb the so called pinch points & other issues on uk roads ,which is all good ,but feel it will only work in the short term .
I can think of road schemes which have worked well like the A55 North Wales expressway. I would like to see a short section of motorway cutting off the corner M56 to M6 southbound. Say.. Jnc 12 M56 to jnc 18 M6. Improve N Wales, Chester, Holyhead (for Ireland) to the Midlands and S of England. The A road route Chester to M56 near Kidsgrove is better now but there are still slow bits with 30 mph limit.
Originally Posted by emails:
“sorry if there is already a thread on this ,just could not find one. looking back to this year november budget ,i wanted to make a note on the road improvment plans that was brought up. i think plans in this area are good ,but feel it only benefits a short term solution. for example the idea behind the M6 so called pinch point where it meets the M5 & the motorway link to telford is a good idea ,but say give it 10-20 years & i bet it will be another pinch point. more of us in cars & more lorrys on the road . is there a better solution ? i don't know?”
“sorry if there is already a thread on this ,just could not find one. looking back to this year november budget ,i wanted to make a note on the road improvment plans that was brought up. i think plans in this area are good ,but feel it only benefits a short term solution. for example the idea behind the M6 so called pinch point where it meets the M5 & the motorway link to telford is a good idea ,but say give it 10-20 years & i bet it will be another pinch point. more of us in cars & more lorrys on the road . is there a better solution ? i don't know?”
Yes, take the M6 Toll into public ownership and remove the toll.
Originally Posted by emails:
“i think this responds to the november budget statment which the chanclor anounced an extra 1billion or somthing to curb the so called pinch points & other issues on uk roads ,which is all good ,but feel it will only work in the short term .”
“i think this responds to the november budget statment which the chanclor anounced an extra 1billion or somthing to curb the so called pinch points & other issues on uk roads ,which is all good ,but feel it will only work in the short term .”
These may well only be short term solutions but they are still better than doing nothing. At least they are mostly quick schemes to implement as we all know how poor government is at long terms strategic planning.
Originally Posted by Pemblechook:
“I can think of road schemes which have worked well like the A55 North Wales expressway. I would like to see a short section of motorway cutting off the corner M56 to M6 southbound. Say.. Jnc 12 M56 to jnc 18 M6. Improve N Wales, Chester, Holyhead (for Ireland) to the Midlands and S of England. The A road route Chester to M56 near Kidsgrove is better now but there are still slow bits with 30 mph limit.”
“I can think of road schemes which have worked well like the A55 North Wales expressway. I would like to see a short section of motorway cutting off the corner M56 to M6 southbound. Say.. Jnc 12 M56 to jnc 18 M6. Improve N Wales, Chester, Holyhead (for Ireland) to the Midlands and S of England. The A road route Chester to M56 near Kidsgrove is better now but there are still slow bits with 30 mph limit.”
yes i will agree there .a perfect motorway linking the A55 at chester to M6 south via tattonhall & broxton op the A41 .
Originally Posted by Evo102:
“Yes, take the M6 Toll into public ownership and remove the toll.”
“Yes, take the M6 Toll into public ownership and remove the toll.”
I love the M6 Toll. It's my favourite section of road in the country.
Yes, you're right, you do move the bottleneck and encourage more drivers in the roads who will help create that new bottleneck.
Ultimately the problem is there isn't enough room for all the vehicles in the centres many people want to travel to.
The best way to reduce congestion on the roads is better, cheaper public transport to get people off the roads.
Ultimately the problem is there isn't enough room for all the vehicles in the centres many people want to travel to.
The best way to reduce congestion on the roads is better, cheaper public transport to get people off the roads.
Originally Posted by andykn:
“The best way to reduce congestion on the roads is better, cheaper public transport to get people off the roads.”
“The best way to reduce congestion on the roads is better, cheaper public transport to get people off the roads.”
Public transport could be free and I still wouldn't use it to get to/from work. My commute options are
1) Drive 15 miles. Door to door in 20 minutes. Mostly dual carriageways. Service departs whenever I want.
2) Walk 15 minutes. 30 min bus. Wait for another 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Door to door in 2 hrs if I'm lucky. Miss a bus and it could be 3 hrs.
3) Walk 20 mins. 20 min train (one per hour) wait for a 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Again door to door in 2 hrs.
Even if there was a bus stop outside of my front door I can't see how it would be in any bus operator's interests to lay on a direct express service to where I work.
Originally Posted by LostFool:
“I love the M6 Toll. It's my favourite section of road in the country.”
“I love the M6 Toll. It's my favourite section of road in the country.”
Motorways? - huh, luxury!
We used to dream of driving on a motorway.
Try driving from Sheffield to Manchester in winter, over the Woodhead Pass.
if any stretch of road needs upgrading, there's your first section.
Originally Posted by LostFool:
“Public transport could be free and I still wouldn't use it to get to/from work. My commute options are
1) Drive 15 miles. Door to door in 20 minutes. Mostly dual carriageways. Service departs whenever I want.
2) Walk 15 minutes. 30 min bus. Wait for another 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Door to door in 2 hrs if I'm lucky. Miss a bus and it could be 3 hrs.
3) Walk 20 mins. 20 min train (one per hour) wait for a 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Again door to door in 2 hrs.
Even if there was a bus stop outside of my front door I can't see how it would be in any bus operator's interests to lay on a direct express service to where I work.”
“Public transport could be free and I still wouldn't use it to get to/from work. My commute options are
1) Drive 15 miles. Door to door in 20 minutes. Mostly dual carriageways. Service departs whenever I want.
2) Walk 15 minutes. 30 min bus. Wait for another 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Door to door in 2 hrs if I'm lucky. Miss a bus and it could be 3 hrs.
3) Walk 20 mins. 20 min train (one per hour) wait for a 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Again door to door in 2 hrs.
Even if there was a bus stop outside of my front door I can't see how it would be in any bus operator's interests to lay on a direct express service to where I work.”
It might not work for you, but better public transport could work for many others.
Originally Posted by Irritable Owl:
“Motorways? - huh, luxury!
We used to dream of driving on a motorway.
Try driving from Sheffield to Manchester in winter, over the Woodhead Pass.
if any stretch of road needs upgrading, there's your first section.”
“Motorways? - huh, luxury!
We used to dream of driving on a motorway.
Try driving from Sheffield to Manchester in winter, over the Woodhead Pass.
if any stretch of road needs upgrading, there's your first section.”
You are in luck. A trans-Pennine tunnel is on the the government's top 6 strategic road projects currently being planned. And it's good to see that three of the schemes are about improving east-west links in the country.
https://www.gov.uk/government/collec...tegy-post-2020
Northern Trans-Pennine — the A66 and A69 corridors
Trans-Pennine tunnel — linking Manchester to Sheffield
Manchester north-west quadrant — the M60 from junctions 8 to 18
A1 east of England — from the M25 to Peterborough
Oxford to Cambridge expressway
M25 south-west quadrant
And the latest report on the tunnel project (reports on the other 5 schemes are also on the site)
https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...e-3-report.pdf
On the continent it seems to me that in just a year they can construct an entire new motorway, complete with fly-overs, roundabouts, access lanes, etc. ANY roadworks in this country take YEARS. In a local car park they need to replace a poll. An area around the poll has been taped off and a piece of machinery and three men have arrived every day for four days but - no new poll yet. Somebody's making an enormous amount of money out of "infrastructure".
Originally Posted by theid:
“On the continent it seems to me that in just a year they can construct an entire new motorway, complete with fly-overs, roundabouts, access lanes, etc. ANY roadworks in this country take YEARS. In a local car park they need to replace a poll. An area around the poll has been taped off and a piece of machinery and three men have arrived every day for four days but - no new poll yet. Somebody's making an enormous amount of money out of "infrastructure".”
“On the continent it seems to me that in just a year they can construct an entire new motorway, complete with fly-overs, roundabouts, access lanes, etc. ANY roadworks in this country take YEARS. In a local car park they need to replace a poll. An area around the poll has been taped off and a piece of machinery and three men have arrived every day for four days but - no new poll yet. Somebody's making an enormous amount of money out of "infrastructure".”
You should start a poll on this.
A roads through town centres can be improved to make traffic flow better.
The high street near me has removed bus lanes and traffic lights.
Extended payments with designated loading bays
Elongated central islands for pedestrians to help people cross the road safely - no zebra or pedestrian controlled lights.
Traffic is now moving through evenly and rarely stops, it feels safer and calmer for all concerned.
The high street near me has removed bus lanes and traffic lights.
Extended payments with designated loading bays
Elongated central islands for pedestrians to help people cross the road safely - no zebra or pedestrian controlled lights.
Traffic is now moving through evenly and rarely stops, it feels safer and calmer for all concerned.
We need to work on getting more use out of ALL our transport systems, if you have a present for your brothers wedding in 6 months time does it need some guy trying to break the land speed record to deliver it just to be sat in your cupboard for months?
We have a canal system that covers a lot of the country and for the sort of stuff thats not too heavy and you don't mind a weeks wait to get it then it could take a good few van's off the road and the same with rail etc and all you need is the delivery systems for the final leg rather than large trucks/vans trundling down the motorways.
Time sensitive stuff then generally it wouldn't work but for lets say Tesco's and their order of tinsel in July I doubt they'd really care how it gets to the local dispatch point.
We have a canal system that covers a lot of the country and for the sort of stuff thats not too heavy and you don't mind a weeks wait to get it then it could take a good few van's off the road and the same with rail etc and all you need is the delivery systems for the final leg rather than large trucks/vans trundling down the motorways.
Time sensitive stuff then generally it wouldn't work but for lets say Tesco's and their order of tinsel in July I doubt they'd really care how it gets to the local dispatch point.
Originally Posted by LostFool:
“You are in luck. A trans-Pennine tunnel is on the the government's top 6 strategic road projects currently being planned. And it's good to see that three of the schemes are about improving east-west links in the country.
https://www.gov.uk/government/collec...tegy-post-2020
Northern Trans-Pennine — the A66 and A69 corridors
Trans-Pennine tunnel — linking Manchester to Sheffield
Manchester north-west quadrant — the M60 from junctions 8 to 18
A1 east of England — from the M25 to Peterborough
Oxford to Cambridge expressway
M25 south-west quadrant
And the latest report on the tunnel project (reports on the other 5 schemes are also on the site)
https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...e-3-report.pdf”
“You are in luck. A trans-Pennine tunnel is on the the government's top 6 strategic road projects currently being planned. And it's good to see that three of the schemes are about improving east-west links in the country.
https://www.gov.uk/government/collec...tegy-post-2020
Northern Trans-Pennine — the A66 and A69 corridors
Trans-Pennine tunnel — linking Manchester to Sheffield
Manchester north-west quadrant — the M60 from junctions 8 to 18
A1 east of England — from the M25 to Peterborough
Oxford to Cambridge expressway
M25 south-west quadrant
And the latest report on the tunnel project (reports on the other 5 schemes are also on the site)
https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...e-3-report.pdf”
Still no mention of upgrading the A303. It really is beyond a joke throughout the whole of the summer and even most weekends in the winter. There is so much room to upgrade the majority of it into a motorway without causing any undue problems.
Originally Posted by LostFool:
“Public transport could be free and I still wouldn't use it to get to/from work. My commute options are
1) Drive 15 miles. Door to door in 20 minutes. Mostly dual carriageways. Service departs whenever I want.
2) Walk 15 minutes. 30 min bus. Wait for another 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Door to door in 2 hrs if I'm lucky. Miss a bus and it could be 3 hrs.
3) Walk 20 mins. 20 min train (one per hour) wait for a 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Again door to door in 2 hrs.
Even if there was a bus stop outside of my front door I can't see how it would be in any bus operator's interests to lay on a direct express service to where I work.”
“Public transport could be free and I still wouldn't use it to get to/from work. My commute options are
1) Drive 15 miles. Door to door in 20 minutes. Mostly dual carriageways. Service departs whenever I want.
2) Walk 15 minutes. 30 min bus. Wait for another 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Door to door in 2 hrs if I'm lucky. Miss a bus and it could be 3 hrs.
3) Walk 20 mins. 20 min train (one per hour) wait for a 30 min bus. Walk 20 mins. Again door to door in 2 hrs.
Even if there was a bus stop outside of my front door I can't see how it would be in any bus operator's interests to lay on a direct express service to where I work.”
As a one time much travelling man, I too alarmed at the idea that public transport is the panacea for travelling. And don't I just love the adverts and throw away lines. How well I remember words like "Birmingham's only an hour up the M1" when the reality was that the 15 miles to reach the M1 took almost as long. Or the argument for using the train was exactly as you've described; of course you could fulfill part of the public transport dream by driving to the station, only to find you couldn't find a parking space and if you could, it was as dear as the train fare.
Originally Posted by David_Flett1:
“Still no mention of upgrading the A303. It really is beyond a joke throughout the whole of the summer and even most weekends in the winter. There is so much room to upgrade the majority of it into a motorway without causing any undue problems.”
“Still no mention of upgrading the A303. It really is beyond a joke throughout the whole of the summer and even most weekends in the winter. There is so much room to upgrade the majority of it into a motorway without causing any undue problems.”
The A303 upgrade is committed to and currently in progress as part of the 2015-2020 road building programme. The six projects I mentioned above are in the post-2020 period are are purely in the planning stage,
http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/a30...he-south-west/
However, this does highlight how long the planning process takes in this country before a single shovel hits the ground.
Originally Posted by theid:
“On the continent it seems to me that in just a year they can construct an entire new motorway, complete with fly-overs, roundabouts, access lanes, etc. ANY roadworks in this country take YEARS. In a local car park they need to replace a poll. An area around the poll has been taped off and a piece of machinery and three men have arrived every day for four days but - no new poll yet. Somebody's making an enormous amount of money out of "infrastructure".”
“On the continent it seems to me that in just a year they can construct an entire new motorway, complete with fly-overs, roundabouts, access lanes, etc. ANY roadworks in this country take YEARS. In a local car park they need to replace a poll. An area around the poll has been taped off and a piece of machinery and three men have arrived every day for four days but - no new poll yet. Somebody's making an enormous amount of money out of "infrastructure".”
It's going to take 6 years to design and build a relatively small bypass (few miles max) near me. Small in scale, but of massive importance to the villages that are currently plagued with heavy traffic including an HGV every few seconds at its worst.
6 years. 3 of those is just paper pushing. That's if the government gets off its arse this time and looks at a map to remember what the south west is, because they spent decades ignoring that it exists.
Originally Posted by moox:
“It's going to take 6 years to design and build a relatively small bypass (few miles max) near me. Small in scale, but of massive importance to the villages that are currently plagued with heavy traffic including an HGV every few seconds at its worst.
6 years. 3 of those is just paper pushing. That's if the government gets off its arse this time and looks at a map to remember what the south west is, because they spent decades ignoring that it exists.”
“It's going to take 6 years to design and build a relatively small bypass (few miles max) near me. Small in scale, but of massive importance to the villages that are currently plagued with heavy traffic including an HGV every few seconds at its worst.
6 years. 3 of those is just paper pushing. That's if the government gets off its arse this time and looks at a map to remember what the south west is, because they spent decades ignoring that it exists.”
You could be looking at a route change forced by permission for a development on the existing planned route.
Originally Posted by allaorta:
“As a one time much travelling man, I too alarmed at the idea that public transport is the panacea for travelling. And don't I just love the adverts and throw away lines. How well I remember words like "Birmingham's only an hour up the M1" when the reality was that the 15 miles to reach the M1 took almost as long. Or the argument for using the train was exactly as you've described; of course you could fulfill part of the public transport dream by driving to the station, only to find you couldn't find a parking space and if you could, it was as dear as the train fare.”
“As a one time much travelling man, I too alarmed at the idea that public transport is the panacea for travelling. And don't I just love the adverts and throw away lines. How well I remember words like "Birmingham's only an hour up the M1" when the reality was that the 15 miles to reach the M1 took almost as long. Or the argument for using the train was exactly as you've described; of course you could fulfill part of the public transport dream by driving to the station, only to find you couldn't find a parking space and if you could, it was as dear as the train fare.”
You've not thought this through. You only need to get another 1 in 10 drivers off the roads to significantly reduce congestion. Or persuade 20% of drivers to use public transport for 50% of the trips they currently use the car for has the same effect.
Originally Posted by moox:
“It's going to take 6 years to design and build a relatively small bypass (few miles max) near me. Small in scale, but of massive importance to the villages that are currently plagued with heavy traffic including an HGV every few seconds at its worst.
6 years. 3 of those is just paper pushing. That's if the government gets off its arse this time and looks at a map to remember what the south west is, because they spent decades ignoring that it exists.”
“It's going to take 6 years to design and build a relatively small bypass (few miles max) near me. Small in scale, but of massive importance to the villages that are currently plagued with heavy traffic including an HGV every few seconds at its worst.
6 years. 3 of those is just paper pushing. That's if the government gets off its arse this time and looks at a map to remember what the south west is, because they spent decades ignoring that it exists.”
I take it you're not one of the people adversely impacted by this new road, hence your lack of concern.
And how did the A30 get so many upgrades, only used a few weekends a year, if it had been so badly ignored. When do you think they last upgraded or will upgrade a road near me?
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