HOLD-UP MISERY OF M-WAY ISLAND; Longbridge roundabout named as UK's second worst for congestion.
Byline: ARRYN BUGGINSA MOTORWAY island in Warwickshire has been named as the second worst in Britain for congestion.
A poll by lorry drivers says Longbridge Island, south of Warwick, is one of the worst "pinch-points" in the UK motorway network.
It is second only to the Dartford River Crossing on the M25.
Log-jammed Longbridge - which has seen congestion get progressively worse since the M40 opened in stages during the 1990s - is already earmarked for improvements.
In the short term the roundabout where the A46 and A429 meet the M40 is set to get extra lanes on sliproads and road markings.
There are also plans for a new bridge over the motorway to divert A46 traffic away from the blackspot.
The poll involved the views of 11,000 members of the Freight Transport Association, which has a regional base in Leamington.
The FTA conducted the survey among some 200,000 professional road users and have now sent a list of the five worse congestion spots to transport minister John Spellar.
The association also says the problem of ever-decreasing road network reliability is placing a massive burden on the efficiency and competitiveness of UK industry.
Richard Turner, FTA chief executive, said: "Only government can solve this reliability problem. No matter how well we engineer our supply chains, they will fail on a poor network.
"The economy, the industry and all road users are entitled to expect a motorway network of a 21st century standard, fit for the purpose of moving freight and people."
THE TOP FIVE motorway pinch-points are: 1 M25 Dartford River Crossing; 2 M40/A46 junction, Warwick; 3 M4/M5 junction, Almondsbury, Bristol; 4 M25/M4 junction, Heathrow, west London; 5 M56/M60 junction, Northenden, Manchester.
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| Publication: | Coventry Evening Telegraph (England) |
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| Date: | Dec 7, 2002 |
| Words: | 287 |
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