Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to make bus lane access standardised throughout the country.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
Bus lanes are provided to give bus services priority during congested times, which can improve punctuality, reliability and journey times.
Provision of bus lanes is the responsibility of local traffic authorities, including decisions on what type of vehicles are allowed access. The Government believes these decisions are best made at local level as local circumstances will influence what is appropriate. Traffic signing must clearly reflect the classes of vehicle permitted to access bus lanes, so that drivers are clear what is expected of them.
As well as buses and pedal cycles, authorities have discretion to allow motorcycles, hackney carriages and ‘authorised vehicles’ to access bus lanes.
Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effects of removing bus lanes in Manchester on the rate of traffic flow.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department has not carried out any recent assessment of the impact of bus lanes on traffic flow. However, in 2004 we published ‘Bus Priority: The Way Ahead (Resource Pack Edition 2)’ which was the final report of a 4-year research project comprising the analysis of case studies about bus priority projects on UK roads.
Provision of bus priority facilities, including bus lanes, are for the relevant local authority. Assessment and monitoring of the impact of bus lanes on traffic is for the authority concerned to carry out. In relation to Manchester, the responsible authority is Transport for Greater Manchester.
Asked by: Mike Weatherley (Conservative - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has conducted or commissioned research on the effect of limiting bus lane access on speed of traffic flow.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department has not carried out any recent assessment of the impact of bus lanes on traffic flow. However, in 2004 we published ‘Bus Priority: The Way Ahead (Resource Pack Edition 2)’ which was the final report of a 4-year research project comprising the analysis of case studies about bus priority projects on UK roads.
Provision of bus priority facilities, including bus lanes, are for the relevant local authority. Assessment and monitoring of the impact of bus lanes on traffic is for the authority concerned to carry out. In relation to Manchester, the responsible authority is Transport for Greater Manchester.