§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if the transport and road research laboratory has made any study of the potential benefit of a traffic light system that allows an approaching bus to activate changes in traffic lights from red to green.
§ Mr. McLoughlinThe transport and road research laboratory (TRRL) studied bus-activated signals in the United Kingdom in the mid-1970s in both computer simulation and on-street studies. TRRL also participated in international bus priority studies.
At unco-ordinated (non-linked) signals, trials in Swansea showed that average reductions in bus delay of six seconds per bus per signalled junction could be achieved.
In a network of co-ordinated signals in Glasgow, reductions in bus journey times of between 2 per cent. and 15 per cent. were achieved depending on the signalling strategy and the time of day.
Conclusions from the research were that modest net benefits could be achieved. Benefits were less where bus flow was high and where there were conflicting bus movements. Disbenefits to other traffic could outweigh the benefit to buses.