§ Mr. FrenchTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what action his Department has taken as a result of the findings of Transport Research Laboratory report 1120; and what plans his Department has to carry out further studies into safety at roundabouts.
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§ Mr. KeyThe question which is related to safety at roundabouts is an operational matter for the Highways Agency. I have asked the chief executive, Mr. Lawrie Haynes to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Lawrie Haynes to Mr. Douglas French, dated 6 May 1994:
The Minister for Roads and Traffic, Mr. Robert Key, has asked me to write to you in reply to your recent Parliamentary question regarding further studies into safety at roundabouts.The findings of the TRL study report LR1120 have been incorporated into the Departmental Standard for the geometric design of roundabouts TD16/84 and TA42/84 and in TRL's computer program for roundabout design ARCADY/3. A fundamental review of the geometric design of roundabouts was undertaken in 1990 and this led to the revised Standard TD16/93. Whilst continuing to embrace the findings of the earlier TRL study, Report LR1120, the new Standard has adopted additional measures to improve safety for all road users, like amended entry path curvature requirements to ensure adequate deflection on entry, and revised visibility requirements.Concerning further studies into safety, the Highways Agency closely monitors accidents occurring at all Trunk Road junctions, including roundabouts. The accident statistics show that roundabouts are still one of the safest forms of road junction, excluding those comprising flyovers or underpasses and have remained fairly constant over the last 15 years.The Highways Agency is, of course, committed to ensuring the safety of the whole of the Trunk Road network and contributing towards the Government's target for reductions in road traffic accidents. In order to maximise the benefits from the limited research resources that are available you will appreciate the need to target future safety studies towards those areas where the greatest contribution towards safety can be made. I therefore have no plans at present to undertake further studies into safety at roundabouts but of course will keep the issue under review.