§ 28. Mr. Jegerasked the Minister of Transport, in view of the opinion of the Rochdale Committee that further development of port facilities on the River Humber will almost certainly be necessary, if he will include in his road programme a motorway to link with the proposed M.62 as originally contained in the 1946 Motorway Plan.
§ Mr. MarplesI have no plans for extending the proposed Lancashire—Yorkshire motorway, that is, M.62, to Hull. I propose, however, to improve the trunk roads to Hull and to provide a first-class road communication system linking the port both with the West Riding and with Doncaster and the 1202 South. I have appointed a firm of consulting engineers to recommend the most efficient and economical pattern of trunk roads to meet the present and future requirements between the Great North Road and Hull.
§ Mr. JegerWhen does the right hon. Gentleman expect to get a report from his consulting engineers and how long after that does he expect the work to commence?
§ Mr. MarplesI cannot say at the moment. The firm of consulting engineers is one of great experience and I am sure that it will proceed as expeditiously as possible. I can assure the hon. Member that we shall not waste any time after we receive that report.
§ Sir C. OsborneWould my right hon. Friend bear in mind that the road facilities from the ports on the south side of the Humber are as important as the road facilities for the north side? Will he see that a port like Immingham, which is in my constituency, gets as good new facilities to the Midlands and the South as are to be given to Hull?
§ Mr. MarplesI am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that matter, and I should like to consider it.
§ Mr. PopplewellWill the Minister see that the consulting engineers and his advisers give careful consideration when siting this road so that it is somewhere near Selby, which wild do away with the toll bridge?
§ Mr. MarplesI think that I had better wait for the report of the consulting engineers and take that matter up with them later.