Traffic, Comber (Hansard, 25 October 1999)

§ Mr. George Howarth

Responsibility for the subject in question has been delegated to the Roads Service under its Chief Executive, Mr. C. James. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from C. James to Mr. John D. Taylor, dated 21 October 1999: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has asked me to respond to your recently tabled Parliamentary Questions about, inter alia, traffic flows in the vicinity of Newtownards Road, Comber. First, you asked about the volume of traffic on Newtownards Road near the cemetery in Comber, the benefits of a pedestrian crossing at this location and how many pupils are enrolled at Comber Primary and Comber High Schools. The last comprehensive survey of traffic volumes on Newtownards Road close to the cemetery was carried out in 1996. The survey recorded an annual average 24-hour flow of 12,480 vehicles with a peak hour flow of 1,080 vehicles. A more recent survey of peak hour traffic volumes was carried out on 27 September 1999, when the peak hour flow was found to be 1,250 vehicles. This would equate with an annual average 24-hour traffic flow of 14,500 vehicles. As regards the provision of a pedestrian crossing at this location, Roads Service carried out a survey of pedestrians and vehicles on Monday 27 September 1999. Our survey found that during each of the 4 busiest hours of the day the level of pedestrian traffic was significantly less than that required to warrant the provision of a pedestrian crossing. In the circumstances, Roads Service has no proposals to provide a pedestrian crossing at this location. I am advised by my colleagues in the Department of Education that enrolment figures for Comber Primary and Comber High Schools for the academic year 1998–99 were 389 and 448 respectively. Secondly, you asked what assessment has been made of traffic flow conditions at the junction of Darragh Road and Newtownards Road and what plans there are to provide traffic lights at this junction. The flow of traffic at this junction has been assessed in the past but, as it is some time since a full appraisal was carried out, we will undertake an appraisal taking account of the volume of traffic, the lengths of traffic queues and the delays experienced. As regards the provision of traffic lights, such facilities are only provided at junctions where there is significant congestion throughout the day. With the exception of the relatively short duration morning peak period, queues have not been observed at this junction during the course of the working day. Nevertheless, our appraisal of the junction will determine if there is a need for traffic lights at this location and I will write to you again when the results of our appraisal are known. I hope this information is helpful.