§ Mr. Stephen Rossasked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will publish in the Official Report a list of those bypasses at present under construction and those which have passed all stages of approval and now await the necessary financing.
§ Mrs. ChalkerThe following bypasses, including diversions and relief roads, are at present under construction on trunk roads in England:
- A1 Alnwick bypass stage 2
- A6 Chapel-en-le-Frith bypass
- A10 Ely/Littleport bypass
- Al2 Chelmsford bypass
- A17 Swineshead bypass
- A39 Bideford bypass
- A39 Marshgate diversion
- A40 Ross-on-Wye relief road
- A43 Broughton diversion
- A45 Ipswich bypass western section
- A45 St. Neots bypass
- A46 Lincoln relief road
- A47 Great Yarmouth bypass
- A56 Accrington eastern bypass
- A57 Aston relief road
- A57 Worksop southern bypass
- A61 Chesterfield inner relief road
- A66 Darlington bypass
- A69 Greenhead diversion
- A339 Basingstoke bypass
There are no trunk road bypass schemes which, having passed all stages of approval, are now awaiting the necessary financing. Information about similar schemes on roads other than trunk roads is not held centrally.
§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Transport which towns of a size about that of Bedford remain to be bypassed in (a) England and (b) East Anglia.
§ Mrs. ChalkerThe following English towns with a population of 70,000 to 80,000* situated on trunk roads remain to be bypassed:
Bath, Bedford, Cheltenham, Chesterfield, Hastings and Lincoln.There are no other such towns in east Anglia. Corresponding information for towns situated on roads other than trunk roads is not held centrally.
* Source: "Census 1981, Preliminary Report for Towns", published by HMSO, 1981.
§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Transport why further delays have been experienced in the completion of the project for bypassing Bedford.
§ Mrs. ChalkerGood progress is being made on preparatory work for a Bedford bypass. This has brought to light some change in the traffic patterns. Since this could affect the choice of alternative routes, further traffic studies are being carried out and it has been necessary to postpone public consultation about routes from this autumn to next summer. However, subject to the satisfactory completion of the statutory procedures, we still expect to be able to begin construction in 1989.