Coloured Lane for . Buses on New Road
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ACOLOURED 8-ft-wide waiting lane, which will be used by buses when stopping and by other vehicles having to wait for short periods, will be included in each of the twin carriageways forming the Birmingham inner ring road. Work on the first part of it was inaugurated by the Minister of Transport. Mr. Ff. Watkinson, last Friday.
The scheme, which is estimated to cost about £15m., is to build eventually nearly four miles •of double-carriageway around an area which includes the Snow Hill and New Street stations, the town hall and the main business centre. The first part of section 1 of the scheme, which is included in the Government's four-year expanded road programme, will cost £1,164,000, towards which the Minister has made a grant of £700,000.
The twin carriageways' will each be 38 ft. wide, and there will be two 15-ft.wide footpaths. As well as the waiting lane, each of the carriageways will pro-" vide for three 10-ft. lanes of moving traffic. A viaduct will carry the new road over an existing junction, and part of the area beneath the viaduct will he used as a car park.
After he, had inaugurated the work, Mr. Watkinson said it was not generally realized how substantial the present road programme was. Since April, 1955, work had started on some 2,000 road schemes, costing well over £30m., in England and Wales, and there were a great many more to follow.