§ Mr. Wallaceasked the Secretary of State for Transport if, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Staffordshire, Moorlands (Mr. Knox), 26 January, Official Report, column 3, he will indicate what savings he expects in casualties and finance from the sum being set aside in his Department's 1987–88 programme for works on low cost/high return safety engineering schemes.
§ Mr. Peter BottomleyIt is not possible to estimate precisely the accident savings resulting from road schemes. National road schemes overall achieve an economic return of £1.50 for each £1 spent. Within this, accident savings are estimated to account for about £0.20 for each £1 spent.
We expect the low cost/high return safety and improvement schemes within the Department's small schemes programme to achieve a return in excess of the national average and for this return to be predominantly benefits from accident savings.
In 1986–87 we are spending over £35 million on the small scheme programme and we plan to increase the provision to £51 million in 1987–88.