Schedule 7 - Road traffic contraventions
Traffic Management Bill
3:00 pm
Mr John Mann (Bassetlaw, Labour)
I do not seek to repeat anything that my hon. Friend said. Suffice it to say that if we can reduce the work load in magistrates courts, the entire criminal justice system, as well as the traffic system, will benefit. I am sure that this pro-motorist Minister, in a pro-motorist Government, will want to continue his brave record of demonstrating how pro-motorist he is in term of fairness and equity. We look forward to that with anticipation.
I want to raise the issue of rat runs, and I will phrase my previous question more helpfully. One of the traffic signs not included in the list in schedule 7 is the access only sign. Rat runs are a major problem in our road system; across Nottinghamshire, they are a severe problem. I strongly share the county council's view that an access only sign could be used in conjunction with a camera on certain rat runs—in the worst-affected parts of Nottingham, 200 people an hour use rat runs to pass through a residential area. That could give local authorities a new and imaginative power to control rat runs. If such a system were deemed worthy of future consideration, could it be added to the Bill, either now or later?