§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement outlining current criteria used to determine which forward destinations are shown on road direction signs on primary routes in Scotland.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonFirst, places are selected as being of traffic importance because of their value as reference points for drivers to assist them to find the most satisfactory route on long journeys. They are then classed as either super-primary destinations (Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness only) or primary destinations (all others). As a rule advance direction signs should contain only one place name for each direction and on primary routes this should be the next primary destination along the immediate route. A super-primary destination may also appear. This rule is not applied so rigidly as to impair the effectiveness of the signing system and occasionally additional primary destinations may appear.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list in theOfficial Report all places of traffic importance in the Borders region.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonThey are Coldstream, Galashiels, Hawick, Jedburgh and Peebles.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects the road signposting of the town of Hawick on that part of the A7 in the Dumfries and Galloway region and on the M6 to be carried out.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonWhen the proposal to signpost Hawick was agreed in June 1986 it was on the basis of a gradual programme to implement the necessary sign changes over five years, with priority for replacement of these groups of signs that were in the worst state of repair.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list in theOfficial Report locations of primary route signs situated to the south of the town of Hawick which show (a) Hawick and (b) Galashiels as a place of traffic importance.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonWork on amending signposting to the south of Hawick to show Hawick as a place of traffic importance has not yet started in Dumfries and Galloway or Cumbria. However, Hawick has been added to a route confirmatory sign 1½ miles south of Hawick and to an advance direction sign at the A7/B711 junction, both in Borders region. Galashiels appears on primary route signs at the following locations:
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Cumbria M6/A7 Junction 44 (for travellers on A7 northbound, A74 southbound and approaching from Brampton/Carlisle Airport). A7 Harker Park. A7 Blackford (south end and St. John the Baptist Parish Church). A7 West Linton.
A7/A6071 Longtown (north and south). A7 Oakbank. Dumfries and Galloway A7/B7201 Canonbie. A7/B6357 Canonbie. A7/B720 Hollows. A7/B6318 Skipper's Bridge. A7/B7068 Langholm. A7/C76A Whitsheils. A7/C78A Sorbie. A7/C77A Fiddleton Toll.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to list the town of Hawick as a place of traffic importance alongside the town of Galashiels on road signs from the north within the Lothian region.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonI agreed last month that Hawick should be included alongside Galashiels on road signs from the north within Lothian region.