§ Mr. MarlowTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the causes of congestion on the southbound carriageway of the M1 between junctions 15 and 12 between 20.00 and 22.00 hours on Sunday 12 June, and what immediate action he intends to take to prevent a recurrence.
§ Mr. Peter BottomleySouthbound traffic on this section of MI is very heavy on Sunday afternoons and evenings. A fatal accident near junction 12 at 18.30 hours on 12 June caused congestion to build up rapidly. The delays extended throughout the evening.
An experimental automatic incident detection system is being installed on the northbound carriageway of the M1 450W between junctions 10 and 19. No immediate measures are to be taken on the southbound carriageway until the results have been evaluated. We continue the work of engineering, education, enforcement, exhortation and example which is designed to cut casualties, their causes and consequences by one third in 12 years.