§ Mr. Arthur Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Transport what consideration he has given to the M1-A1 link single carriageway proposal in the context of the preferred strategy jointly proposed by the Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire highway authorities, which recommends the use of the dual carriageway
604Wcarriageway; what has been the increase or decrease in heavy goods vehicles on each stretch for each of the last seven years; and which, if any, of the stretches are subject to 50 m.p.h. limits for safety reasons.
§ Mr. HoramThe following stretches carried the heaviest August traffic when last counted. Changes in flows of heavy goods vehicles—over 1½ tons unladen weight—are not available in the precise form requested.
from the Collingtree junction of the M1; what environmental factors are involved; and what are the respective costs of these alternatives.
§ Mr. HoramThe relative merits of the Department's strategy and that of the county councils are being considered in depth. It is not yet possible to make a reliable assessment of costs but present indications suggest that, while the counties' strategy may be cheaper, it does not provide the economic benefits of the Department's. Factors being considered include traffic noise, proximity to dwellings, effect on agricultural land, visual intrusion, severance and the like. Other significant factors are engineering feasibility and the value of the alternatives in enabling traffic to move between the Midlands and the East Coast ports.