Bristol doctor prescribes axing car share lane to ease traffic misery. Do you agree?
A hospital doctor has launched a petition to get the car share lane on the city's ring road scrapped.
Nigel Lane claims the car share lane – officially called a high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane – on the A4174, which bans drivers without passengers at busy times of the day, causes more traffic problems than it solves.
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He said there had been mornings when it had added between 45 minutes to an hour to his journey to work from Barrs Court.
Now Dr Lane, 30, has taken his campaign to the Government and started a petition on the Number 10 website. He has also set up a page on social networking site Facebook.
The lane was originally introduced in 1998 between Bromley Heath and Hambrook as a way of encouraging car sharing. At the time it was only the second of its kind in the country.
But its arrival led to complaints that it penalised those who could not share cars and encouraged drivers to use rat runs in order to avoid the ring road.
Although it has now been in place for such a long time, use has levelled off in recent years, despite efforts to promote car sharing. A review showed it was used by about one in three of all vehicles and of those, a quarter were not meant to be there.
An experimental extension to the lane, added in 2004 from the Church Lane bridge to the Wick Wick roundabout, was met with opposition and was removed last year.
At the time, South Gloucestershire Council said the original length of HOV lane would remain as it would risk losing Government funding for road improvement schemes if it were removed altogether. But Dr Lane is pressing for the whole HOV lane to be taken away.
He said: "The lane causes so much trouble and at peak hours the traffic is absolutely horrendous.
"I work shifts and at weekends and on days when I'm not travelling at peak times, the journey is so much quicker.
"But often I'm on the ring road between 7am and 7.30am and it's very frustrating to be sitting there not moving when the other lane could be in use.
"The lane appears to me to slow the traffic down and cause more problems than it solves. I believe it should be finally scrapped."
So far 18 people have added their names to the petition.
South Gloucestershire Council spokesman Ryan Skeets said: "Following a review, the council is progressing plans to alter the current two-plus lanes to become priority vehicle lanes, as well as reducing their hours of operation. This will enable a greater number of vehicles to use them, which will benefit the users of general traffic lanes.
"We are currently waiting to hear back from the Department of Transport regarding the approval of these plans."
88 Comments
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by goodfellow1
Tuesday, August 02 2011, 1:27PM
“Do you support or oppose the campaign End the 2+ lane on the A4174 ring road
http://tinyurl.com/3cst8mv
Please click on the link above to have your say on the campaign.
It's free and takes just a few seconds of your time. I really think this is an important campaign.
Thanks!
Digital Democracy - The social network for your local community.”
by Ali, Bristol
Wednesday, March 10 2010, 8:29PM
“Whats the name of the facebook group please?”
by Clarkson is a moron, Planet Sane
Wednesday, March 10 2010, 4:45PM
“Since 1998, S. Glos council has presided over the construction oif the Axa/Sun life and MoD buildings, plus the continued expansion of UWE. It appears not to have occurred to them to expand the required transport infrastructure comensurately.”
by Clarkson is a moron, Planet Sane
Wednesday, March 10 2010, 4:43PM
“a”
by joe, bristol
Wednesday, March 10 2010, 10:38AM
“@Tim, Bristol
WRONG! 2 lanes are faster than one.
Lets follow on with your suggestion and reduce all the motorways to one lane. Will that work? WIll that 'make no difference to journey times'...
I think you answered your own question 'are people stupid?' seems that some people called Tim, are.”
by Tim, Bristol
Wednesday, March 10 2010, 10:01AM
“I'd like to post on here my full support for the 2+ lane...
FAO Cllr Rogers:
KEEP THE 2+ LANE
It is not progress if we scrap it, it will be a backwards step and it'll make no difference to journey times. Are people stupid?”
by Dr Nigel Lane, Bristol
Wednesday, March 10 2010, 8:42AM
“I am glad that this has created a debate about the 2+ lane on the A4174. I am not against car sharing or green transport options but why drivers should be penalised for travelling to work is beyond me. Do sign the petition on the Number 10 website (Search: A4174) and/or join the Facebook group (search Groups: A4174)
to show your support. If enough people support scrapping the 2+ lane then the Council will have to rethink their options.
75 people have signed the peition to date and 50 have joined the Facebook group.
Many thanks,
Nigel Lane.”
by Ali, Bristol
Tuesday, March 09 2010, 11:12PM
“The 2+ lane takes most people to work where there is shift work (Rolls-Royce and Royal Mail) or flexible working (again Rolls-Royce and Airbus) or lectures at varied times during the day (UWE and Filton College). Not easy to car share for those working at the above. How about extending the whole of the ring road and provide a cheap (not First bus!!) around the ring road :) those who use it to get from say Hanham/Longwell Green to Emersons Green and further to Filton. At the moment they would have to take one bus to the centre and then one up Gloucester Road which means an extra hour at least getting to work. A bus service round the ring road would reduce that time in travelling perhaps?”
by Rich, Bristol
Tuesday, March 09 2010, 11:07PM
“This lane should go and the sooner the better. Most people who could use it can't take advantage until they've been stuck in traffic for up to 40 minutes before hand. It's useless and dangerous. Well done Dr Lane, you'll ease a lot of peoples stress and pain without ever having them on your books... good man!!”
by Jonathan, South Gloucestershire
Tuesday, March 09 2010, 11:03PM
“My driver and I would like to place on record our appreciation of this lane.
Bravo to the council!”