§ Sir J. Fletcher-Cookeasked the Minister of Transport whether, having regard to the inadequate road from the Midlands via Oxford to Southampton Docks, and to the need to facilitate the speedy transport of exports to the ports, he will accord a high priority to the provision of appropriate road access to Southampton from the Midlands.
§ Mr. Tom FraserMajor improvements of the trunk roads between Southampton and Oxford costing over £5½ million are either already in hand or programmed for the next financial year. Within Southampton improvement of classified roads leading to the docks is planned within the next two years or so at a cost of over £½ million.
With these and certain other improvements planned for the longer term, the route between Southampton and the Midlands should be reasonably adequate having regard to the growth of traffic as now foreseen and to the many other urgent demands upon the highway improvement programme.
But if there are major developments in, for example, the future of the port of Southampton then highway plans would have to be reconsidered also.