§ 10. Mr. Swinglerasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation what mileage and proportion of trunk roads in Staffordshire have dual carriageways; and to what extent these will be increased when present schemes have been completed.
§ Mr. Boyd-Carpenter7.8 miles or 4.8 per cent., Sir. A further 5.3 miles of dual carriageways will be built or started this year, and a further 7.7 miles are at present proposed for the following three years, raising the percentage from 4.8 per cent. to 12.8 per cent. In addition, 43 miles of the Birmingham-Preston motor road, which, of course, will have dual carriageways, will be within the County of Stafford.
§ Mr. SwinglerWhile we in Staffordshire welcome the schemes, is the Minister aware that even when they are completed Staffordshire will still be worse off than most other counties as far as dual carriageways are concerned? [HON. MEMBERS: "No."] Certainly. As Staffordshire is, of course, one of the most important counties, will the Minister therefore pay attention to the need for increasing the number of dual carriageways?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI think that both the comparisons which the hon. Gentleman made only illustrate how invidious comparisons proverbially are.