TRAFFIC lights in the UK should be scrapped, according to the think tank in the Institute of Economic Affairs after researching the growth of traffic management in the UK over the last 16 years.

They found that the number of traffic lights had increased by 25 per cent while over the same period, the number of vehicles had risen by only five per cent while the length of all the roads had increased by only 1.3 per cent.

They also found speed calming measures counterproductive, damaging both to the environment and health as the number of cars repairs rose dramatically with the number of humps inserted also caused rises in both CO2 emissions and journey times which cost the country an estimated £16billion a year.

In connection with other studies, the knock-on effect of increasing traffic lights, speed humps and speed restrictions was to reduce the number of jobs by reducing the effective radius of travel to work by nearly one third.

Slower journey times increase trading costs as every self-employed white van man and lorry driver knows to his, and the clients’, cost.

So next time the nanny do-gooders want 20mph restrictions and more speed humps, think again.

You will be making the UK less competitive, thus killing the golden goose that lays the economic egg on which you as well as we all have to survive.

DOUGLAS MILLS

Fraser Road, Poole

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