§ Mr. Morganasked the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure, in the event of heavier lorries being permitted, that they shall be restricted to major roads and that all practicable steps shall be taken, at least in the case of small rural towns, to divert such traffic on to bypasses or ring roads, with a view to avoiding damage to buildings in such towns.
§ Mrs. ChalkerRegardless of any changes in permitted lorry weights, it is the responsibility of local highway authorities to make full use of their existing wide powers to restrict heavy lorries to the routes most suitable to them. My right hon. Friend has recently issued a circular urging them to make more extensive use of these powers, and he has also said that he will pay particular regard to this aspect of a county council's policy in deciding how much expenditure to accept for transport supplementary grant.