§ 37. Sir W. BRASSasked the Minister of Transport whether he can give the House an approximate estimate of the number of de-restriction signs which will have to be exhibited on the by-pass roads in and around London, on which he has decided the 30 miles an hour speed limit shall not apply, as a result of paragraph 2 of his direction dated 4th January, 1935, issued in pursuance of Section 1 of the Road Traffic Act, 1934?
§ 39. Sir GIFFORD FOXasked the Minister of Transport whether he can state what is the estimated number and 1934 cost of 30 miles per hour speed-limit de-restriction signs which are to be placed on by-pass roads under the proposed arrangements in the London area by which certain by-pass roads are to be exempted from the speed-limit despite the fact that they are illuminated?
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAFour thousand signs at an estimated cost of £1,700.
§ Sir W. BRASSIs the hon. Member aware that not a single sign has been put up so far on any of these roads?
§ 38. Sir W. BRASSasked the Minister of Transport whether he will state, with reference to the Traffic Sign (Speed Limit) Provisional Regulations now lying upon the Table of the House, what part or parts of the sign illustrated in Diagram 1 are to be fitted with reflectors or reflecting material, as prescribed by Regulation No. 6 (1)?
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAEither the figures and the surrounding ring may be fitted with reflectors, or the whole face of the sign, with the exception of the figure 30, may be made to reflect light.
§ Sir W. BRASSThat is not an answer to the question. I asked which part was going to be reflected. Will the hon. Member consider the advisability of putting examples of these signs in Westminster Hall with some lamps on them, at a distance, in order to enable us to judge whether they are efficient?
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAI do not think it is necessary to fix a speed limit of 30 miles in Westminster Hall.
§ Sir W. BRASSIn order to see whether the signs are efficient or not.
§ 44. Mr. GROVESasked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that the speed of vehicles operating upon the Beckton Road and Silvertown Way, within the county borough of West Ham, is unrestricted; and whether, as the West Ham Highways Authority have carefully considered the matter and recommended that a maximum of 30 miles per hour be there imposed, he will, in the interest of public safety, have the whole matter reconsidered and accede to the desires of the local authority?
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAI have reviewed the proposals with regard to the application of the speed limit to the thorough 1935 fares mentioned by the hon. Member in the light of the representations made by the highway authority and I have now decided that the speed limit should apply to both Beckton Road and Silvertown Way.
§ 47. Mr. TURTONasked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that many of the small signs denoting the end of the speed limit under Section 1 of the Road Traffic Act, 1934, are being placed on existing lamp-posts and are for that reason rendered more difficult to be distinguished by the average user of the road; and whether he will take the necessary steps to secure that all signs denoting the beginning or end of the speed limit under the said Section are either placed upon existing traffic signs or upon standards specially erected and conspicuously marked for that purpose?
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAI will certainly consider my hon. Friend's suggestions if difficulties are found to arise in practice in connection with the signs to which he refers.
§ 49. Sir W. BRASSasked the Minister of Transport how he proposes to indicate to drivers a de-restricted section of road under Sub-section (4) of Section 1 of the Road Traffic Act of 1934 where the system of street lighting is by overhead lamps, or by lamps attached to tramway standards, or by lamps attached to telegraph poles instead of by lamp-posts as described in paragraph 2 of his directions, dated 4th January, 1935?
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAThe directions provide that on a de-restricted road these signs shall be erected upon the lampposts. There seems to be no reason why a pole or standard to which a lamp is attached should not be regarded as a lamp-post.
§ Sir W. BRASSDo I understand that a telegraph pole at the side of the road and hidden from the driver, is considered to be a lamp-post, and that tram standards are to be lamps? All drivers will have to look on both sides of the road in order to find whether they are in a built-up area or not.
§ Mr. HORE-BELISHAI should like to satisfy my hon. and gallant Friend that everything that it is open to me to do is being done to facilitate his passage.