MSP issues call for trial traffic lights switch-off at Longman
TRAFFIC lights at the Longman roundabout should be switched off for a trial period, a Highland politician has said.
Highlands and Islands MSP David Stewart says the situation cannot continue and wants to see the advantages and disadvantages of turning off the lights.
It follows a new report which suggests around 80 per cent of traffic lights in the UK could be ripped out to make roads safer and cut traffic jams. The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) also found a two-minute delay to every car journey equates to a loss to the economy of around £16 billion a year.
It cites a number of case studies from around the UK, including a trial switch-off in Portishead, near Bristol, which saw traffic flow improve. The lights were eventually removed and it is an approach the report’s authors want to see replicated.
The paper is likely to add fuel to the already mounting campaign to see the traffic lights on the Longman Roundabout removed.
Pressure has been building on transport chiefs to scrap them, particularly on the back of two recent failures which saw traffic flow more freely and journey times reduced.
A Facebook page calling for the lights to be removed has attracted more than 3000 likes, while two petitions have been set up calling for the lights to be removed. One has more than 2500 signatures.
Mr Stewart is behind the other and is hopeful of reaching 1000 signatures this week. “I think we should look at all options with regard the Kessock Bridge lights,” he said. “Yes, switch them off for a trial period of three months and see what the advantages and disadvantages are. Then, if it is deemed essential we have lights at this location, what can we improve with regard to sequencing and road markings.
“What is clear is that the current situation cannot continue and something needs to be done, and that is what I am trying to do by highlighting this issue.”
Bear Scotland said it was working to make the lights “as efficient as possible.”
A spokesman said: “The traffic surveys carried out at the end of last year provided useful information to allow the performance of the traffic signal timings to be examined,” he said. “We are currently reviewing this information together with a specialist sub-contractor to identify the optimum design solution for the roundabout.”
Nobody was available at the time of going to press to comment on a trial switch-off.
