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Car-sharing lanes to target junction blackspots
By James Kirkup, Political Correspondent
Last Updated: 2:07am GMT 21/03/2008

Up to 12 priority lanes allowing motorists with passengers to bypass the worst traffic blackspots will be built around the country under plans to encourage car sharing.

The new "high occupancy vehicle" (HOV) lanes will allow drivers to avoid the most congested junctions between busy motorways. Lone drivers who use the lanes face being stopped by the police or photographed by automatic cameras and fined.

The country's first HOV lane was opened in Yorkshire yesterday, but The Daily Telegraph understands that a series of others will follow.

Officials are considering at least another dozen such sites across the motorway network, where new "gateway bypass schemes" could be built at traffic blackspots. The Highways Agency is studying the worst bottlenecks, where drivers often face long delays as they try to exit one motorway and join another.

The focus of Government multiple-passenger plans switched to junctions after feasibility studies suggested that using HOV lanes on main stretches of motorways could lead to accidents.

Ruth Kelly, the Transport Secretary, opened the first motorway car-share lane, a 1.7-mile section in West Yorkshire. The lane links the southbound M606 from Bradford to the eastbound M62 towards Leeds, allowing users to bypass a heavily congested section where the two motorways merge. It is estimated that cars using the lane will save an average of six to eight minutes per journey.

It is open to cars, vans and taxis with two or more occupants. Minibuses, coaches and buses can also use the lane, along with motorcyclists, whether carrying passengers or not. Ms Kelly said: "We have identified around 500 miles of motorway as potential priority sites for new traffic management measures."

Edmund King, the president of the AA, said: "It is unlikely that such a short stretch will tempt many potential car-sharers out of the driving seat."

Take Mr. Tintern, who, like you, does a unique job - he maintains visualization software for computer aided drug-designers. He commutes about 20 miles each way to work, as it is too dear to move closer. But the roads are clogged up, and Mr. Tintern gets angry about that. He wants the general taxpayer (me and you) to just improve the road he drives on so that he can get to work more easily. But he doesn't want his taxes to go up. There are many people in the town where he works (Cambridge) with the smarts to do his work, but he'll work for less than they want.

Bombus, your council tax funds the roads, not your vehicle excise duty. You've seriously got to get out of this, "I pay for the roads therefore they are mine", mentality, it's making you crazy.

...(and it certainly didn't pay for the road outside my house which was put down before cars were owned by more than 0.000005% of the population).

You've seriously got to get out of this, "I pay for the roads therefore they are mine", mentality, it's making you crazy.

If it was JUST Mr. Tintern, then there wouldn't be any congestion

I know... there's not enough road to go around. And if we made enough road to go around now, there's still not enough road to go around in future because people commute further and further, soaking up any advantage, and costing the earth in taxes at the same time! What a waste, eh?

That is why we are where we are today. No matter how much road we build, people move further out, and congestion stays the same or worsens. And the locals could do the jobs, but grasping commuters do it for less money because they buy cheapo houses miles away! It's a mad world, I tell you.

I know... there's not enough road to go around. And if we made enough road to go around now, there's still not enough road to go around in future because people commute further and further, soaking up any advantage, and costing the earth in taxes at the same time! What a waste, eh?

That is why we are where we are today. No matter how much road we build, people move further out, and congestion stays the same or worsens. And the locals could do the jobs, but grasping commuters do it for less money because they buy cheapo houses miles away! It's a mad world, I tell you.

I like the idea of car sharing - in fact, years ago, I used to do it.

Not that that's the kind of thing that a troll would say or anything.

But as far as "grasping" commuters go - surely they get cheaper houses and then just spend more on commuting?

Newbury showed that more roads don't work, so that's out of the frame.

With respect, this is not true. The Newbury bypass makes a huge difference to South Cost to Midlands traffic and journey times.

you don't talk that much nonsense.

I think ...