HC Deb 18 July 1956 vol 556 cc1199-200
22. Mr. Moss

asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he has considered the communication sent to him by the hon. Member for Meriden with reference to an accident at Hubbards Hill, near Atherstone; and whether he will take steps to improve the safety of this stretch of road.

Mr. Molson

Yes, Sir. A widening of the carriageway would make conditions safer, but I cannot yet say when it will be possible to authorise an improvement scheme.

Mr. Russell

Is it correct to assume that these are not the only plans which my right hon. Friend has in mind, and will he do his utmost to speed up the provision of junctions of this kind? Are they not the best way of relieving congestion?

Mr. Watkinson

My hon. Friend is quite right. The eight which I have announced, although they will cost about £3 million, are only the beginning of plans of this kind for fly-overs and underpasses, but they are the only firm proposals on which I am engaged at the moment.

Following is the list of schemes:

Mr. Moss

Has the right hon. Gentleman noticed that in this serious accident the question of speed was greatly concerned, that one car was travelling at 45 miles an hour, that an oncoming motorcycle was travelling at between 50 and 55 miles an hour and that that was followed by a car travelling at 60 miles an hour? Is not that an argument for imposing a speed limit on that stretch of road?

Mr. Molson

We are carrying out a careful analysis of all the acidents that have taken place recently on that length of road.