§ Mr. Groundasked the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what steps the London residuary body is taking to restore to working order the traffic lights at the crossroads formed by Wellington road south and Hanworth road, Hounslow, which have been out of action for more than two days; what reason has been given for the delay in repairing the lights and for the absence of manual controls in the meantime; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what procedures have been laid down for providing manual control of traffic when traffic lights at busy crossroads in Greater London are out of action.
§ Mr. Peter BottomleyThe present procedures aim to get malfunctioning traffic lights back into commission as quickly as possible. I understand that the contractors took the required steps the same day to restore the lights at this crossroads. A major unit had to be replaced and the effect on the equipment of the snow and freezing conditions meant it did not operate satisfactorily until 14 January. Manual control in the event of traffic lights failure is used only at the busiest junctions at peak times given manpower considerations. As is usual, warning signs were placed on the approaches to this particular crossroads to advise that the signals were out of action.