LET CAR DRIVERS USE THE BUS LANES, SAY NORWICH CONSERVATIVES
Antony Little unveils new City policy first on his weblog

The Conservatives say they would let car drivers use bus lanes as long as they are carrying adult passengers - and I think that City Hall would do well to test the idea on the Newmarket Road.

We want to allow vehicles to use the lanes if they contain up to two adults, but children would not be included in the scheme. The sheme could boost car sharing, without clogging the roads with the school-run.

It is one of a number of proposed measures which the Conservatives nationally say will help drivers deal with everyday traffic irritations.

Sunderland council has already opened up bus lanes to taxis, lorries and cyclists as part of a trial system, and now we want Norwich to get on-board with this congestion cutting initiative and take it further. There is a much underused bus lane on the Newmarket Road which would make an ideal trial scheme - if it works, we could roll it out elsewhere. This could be an imaginative scheme to cut congestion without resorting to the congestion charge of Labour and the LibDems."

There are a lot of people that use the Newmarket Road in and out of the City and it tends to be drivers on their own. Car-sharing has been trialled by councils such as Leeds and they use cameras to check up on drivers. I think Norwich City Council could do worse than run a trial system. It could be the answer to our City's congestion.