§ Sir R. Glynasked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware of the deterioration that is taking place in many roads under county council administration due to a 50 per cent. increase in road motor traffic and to the heavy percentage 140W reduction in the grant given to local authorities from the Road Fund for the maintenance of such roads; and if he will increase the grant this year so avoiding the expenditure in the near future of large sums to bring these roads back to a safe and proper condition.
§ Mr. BarnesI am aware that traffic on some roads is substantially higher than before the war and that with the restricted funds that can be made available the volume of maintenance work that can be carried out is considerably lower than it was before the war. Some deterioration is inevitable in the circumstances. I cannot at present indicate the final amounts of classification grant to be allocated to local highway authorities for the next financial year.