HC Deb 15 March 1978 vol 946 c260W
Mr. Lee

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the percentage, in ton mileage, of commercial traffic on the inland waterways out of the total surface commercial traffic for 1977; and what were the corresponding figures for 1957 and 1967.

Mr. Denis Howell

Information is available only for freight on British Waterways Board waterways, expressed as a percentage of the total freight moved by all modes, including coastal shipping and pipeline.

On this basis the relevant figures are: 1957, 0.3 per cent.; 1967, 0.1 per cent. No figure is yet available for 1977, but that for 1976 was 0.1 per cent. and that for 1977 is likely to be similar.