§ Mr. HindTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has reached any decisions regarding the future of the Traffic Area organisation; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. AtkinsExtensive consultations have been held with interested parties about the future number and pattern of Traffic Area offices and Traffic Area boundaries.
In view of the reducing workload for the organisation, I have decided that the Traffic Area offices in London, Nottingham and Newcastle should be closed, and that the following changes should be made to the present Traffic Area boundaries:
The North Eastern Traffic Area will be extended to include Nottinghamshire and will be administered from the existing Traffic Area office in Leeds.The North Western Traffic Area will be extended to include the whole of Derbyshire and will be administered from the existing Traffic Area office in Manchester.476W
Actual Start of works Programmed Start of works Programmed completion Contract 1: Catthorpe Interchange: February 1990 — Summer 1990 Contract 2: Catthrope to Rothwell: — Spring/Summer 1991 Spring/Summer 1993 Contract 3: Catthorpe to Rothwell: — Spring/Summer 1991 Spring/Summer 1993 Contract 4: Rothwell to Kettering: March 1990 — June 1991 Contract 5(N): Kettering Northern Bypass: — Summer 1991 Winter 1992/3 Contract 5(S): Kettering Southern Bypass: Febraury 1990 — February 1992 Contract 6: Kettering to Thrapston: May 1989 — May 1991 Contract 7: Thrapston to Brampton: November 1989 — July 1991 Contract 8: Thrapston to Brampton: — Spring 1991 Autumn 1992 Contract 9: Thrapston to Brampton: — Summer 1991 Summer 1993 Contract 10: Advance works for Railway Bridge on Kettering Northern Bypass: April 1990 — November 1991 The Eastern Traffic Area will lose Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire and will be extended to include Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and the whole of Essex. It will be administered from the existing Traffic Area office in Cambridge.The Western Traffic Area will be extended to include Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and will be administered from the existing Traffic Area office in Bristol.The remainder of the present South Eastern Traffic Area will be combined with the remainder of the Metropolitan Traffic Area to form a new Traffic Area consisting of London, Surrey, Kent and Sussex. The new area will be administered from the existing Traffic Area office in Eastbourne.There will be no changes to the West Midlands, South Wales or Scottish Traffic Areas and offices.These changes will yield worthwhile savings and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the organisation as a whole.
I have been particularly concerned to create opportunities for staff in the offices being closed. I have agreed that staff in the Traffic Area offices at Newcastle and Nottingham will be given the opportunity, so far as practicable, to transfer to the new posts being created in those cities by the Driving Standards Agency.
The Department will consult those concerned about the implementation of these changes and the transitional arrangements. We will aim to complete the bulk of the work by the middle of 1991.
As required under sections 3(2) and (4) of the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981 my right hon. Friend will in due course lay an order before the House setting out the Traffic Area boundary changes.