Transport
THE Society continues to pursue transport development as an integral part of the major objective of moving Newbury as a flourishing and attractive town into the 21^st Century.

     We are conscious that development of public transport for commuting into the town is likely to be marginal to this objective. Nevertheless, we are pressing for improvements to buses and trains as the main means of transport available to help a large section of the community, particularly the young, the handicapped, and the elderly.

     However, this cannot obscure the fact that for the car commuters (85% at the last count and rising), the bus services cannot be made an economical alternative even with very large subsidies from the public purse.  Furthermore, the draconian measures needed to effect the transfer of even a small proportion of car users to bus or train would be counter productive. No user would achieve the level of travel achieved by the car before the changes were made. All would lose in convenience and most financially.

     We are therefore pressing for persuasion rather than compulsion to solve the commuter problem. At present the peak in Newbury causes little delay. The real problem is to prevent the increase in car commuting forecast for the next twenty years, when the car population, and the number of car drivers, will increase by upward of 30%.

     Unless something is done the situation will become intolerable. Flexible working hours, working from home, and other similar options will help to reduce peak road use. However, substantial reduction can only come from persuasion to increase multiple occupation of cars, to introduce four day working weeks, and re-scheduling planning consent to convert suitable industrial sites as they become available for housing use, as the major means for reductions.

     The construction of a proper interchange at Newbury railway station between buses, cars, and the railway must be a priority, not only for Newbury itself, but to encourage the use of rail for medium and long journeys.

     The Government seems now to be coming round to the idea that all roads are not counter productive. In the context of Newbury it is to be hoped that this will generate a more tolerant attitude toward minor road works to improve access to the town itself. A link distributor road round the Western side of the town would benefit Newbury by reducing the level of traffic passing through central areas between the West and South of the town

     The A34 bypass opened at the end of 1998. Any doubts as to the benefits were dispelled in October when the road closed for urgent repairs to defective surface materials. Chaos returned as the by-pass traffic once again traversed the town. Order was restored only when the work finished and 30/40,000 vehicles a day reverted to the new road.