§ Mr. Bradleyasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a further statement on the report of the Prior committee of inquiry into motorway service areas.
§ Mr. William RodgersAgreement in principle has now been reached with the majority of motorway service area operators on a package of revised financial arrangements. From Friday 6 April there will be a reduction of petrol prices currently prevailing at most service areas by an average of 2p per gallon. The new arrangements are designed to stimulate greater competition between operators and to lead to further price reductions.594W There will then be further negotiations between my Department and operators on the longer term rental arrangements for fuel sales. The aim would be to reach agreement on definitive revisions to operators' leases with effect from April 1980. Meanwhile, higher standards of food, value for money, cleanliness and service generally will be encouraged by a professional inspection system linked to rent rebates for operators who meet, or do better than, agreed targets.
I am not at present persuaded of the desirability of establishing a semiautonomous board to oversee motorway service areas. However, I fully share the committee's view of the need for greater public accountability and for the identification of a single individual as responsible for the provision of efficient motorway services. I shall consider further how best this can be achieved.
I have accepted the committee's recommendation that the new service area programme should be reviewed, and this is now being done in the light of the committee's recommendations on future policy and of the Government's roads programme. In particular, I accept the committee's recommendation that the distance between services on the motorway should not exceed 30 miles. I shall therefore be considering as a matter of priority those stretches of the motorway network where there are gaps well in excess of 30 miles between existing or planned service areas.
Detailed discussions continue with the operators and other interested parties on other aspects of the Prior report, notably on motorway repair and breakdown services. I am anxious that early conclusions should be reached. As a result of these interim steps, the Government believe that there can be a marked improvement in the extent to which motorway service areas meet the needs of the travelling public. In their further consideration of the Prior report, they will seek to maintain the momentum towards higher standards and better value for money.
I should like to pay tribute to Mr. Prior and his colleagues for the immensely valuable work they put into their report, without which such rapid progress in improving the standard of service to the public would not have been possible.