§ Mr. Peter GriffithsTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what assessment he has made of(a) the justification and (b) the management of restrictions to traffic during the last five years by roadworks on the A3 as it bypasses Guildford; [30803]
674W(2) what assurances have been received by his Department from (a) the Highways Agency, (b) the county council and (c) other bodies of free passage for vehicles during the next three years when the current roadworks on the A3 where it bypasses Guildford are completed; [30806]
(3) what estimate his Department has made of the economic cost in the last five years to businesses in the Portsmouth travel-to-work area of delays caused by roadworks on the A3 as it bypasses Guildford; [30805]
(4) during how many days in the last five years has free passage for vehicles been restricted by roadworks on the A3 as it bypasses Guildford. [30807]
§ Mr. WattsThese are operational matters for the Highways Agency. I have asked the chief executive to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Lawrie Haynes to Mr. Peter Griffiths, dated 18 June 1995:
The Minister for Railways and Roads, Mr John Watts, has asked me to write to you in reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about roadworks on the A3 at Guildford.The works that have been carried out on the A3 over the past 5 years have been necessary because much of this 20–30 year old and heavily used road has reached the end of its design life and therefore requires urgent attention. Left too long, structural damage would have occurred and would have been much more costly and difficult to rectify.Restrictions to traffic during the works have been necessary in the interests of both the workforce and road users. I am satisfied that the restrictions have been managed as efficiently as possible bearing in mind the difficulty of operation on this busy road.No assessment has been made of the economic cost of these works on businesses in Portsmouth.Data showing daily lane restrictions on the A3 in the Guildford area for the past 5 years is not available. However, major maintenance was undertaken between Burpham and Wisley during the period November 1993—May 1994 and between Abbotswood and the A31, work started in January this year and is due for completion in July. In addition, some lane restrictions and local diversions were necessary for about six weeks last Summer whilst temporary supports for the A31 bridge over the A3 were put in place.The Agency has given no assurance that there will be no further roadworks on the A3 in the vicinity of Guildford over the next 3 years. Major maintenance is planned next year between Burpham and Abbotswood. Strengthening work is also planned for around the end of this year on the bridge which carries the A3 southbound slip road to the A31 Hogs Back, although we do not expect this to cause undue disruption to A3 traffic.When the A3 roadworks are complete we do not expect the road to require major maintenance for another 15–20 years from completion of each section. Some routine maintenance will of course be required from time to time, but this can be dealt with at off-peak periods with little disruption to traffic.I hope this is helpful.