§ 22. Mr. Danceasked the Minister of Transport whether he will prohibit the siting of bus stops on stretches of road painted with double white lines, where the width of the road makes it impossible for traffic to overtake a stationary bus.
§ Mr. HayIt would be difficult to prohibit this altogether.
We have already advised local authorities that it is undesirable that a bus stop should be so placed that a stationary bus would oblige following vehicles either to stop or to cross a prohibitory line.
§ Mr. DanceIs not my hon. Friend aware that a Standing Committee, of which I was a member, made it an offence to cross a double white line, for which one can have one's licence endorsed? Will he, therefore, give some advice to the public at large about what they ought to do—stop behind the bus and hold up the traffic, or break the law and risk having their licences endorsed?
§ Mr. HayThe advice that I have to give—depending on the circumstances, of course—is that they should stop if they are in any doubt at all. What I think I had better do is to send my hon. Friend a copy of the circular of advice that we gave to local authorities in 1960, and perhaps he will study the matter from that.