The amount of time lost by commuters stuck
in traffic jams in the Bristol area is costing the local
economy a staggering £350 million a year. Workers now spend a
quarter of their journey time to and from work waiting in
stationary traffic queues and the problem is set to get worse,
according to a new report going to the city council this
week.
The city's horrendous
traffic congestion has been blamed on a lack of investment
over the last 20 years, despite massive growth in jobs and
house building.
The £350 million cost to the area's
economy is calculated according to the amount of time wasted
when commuters and delivery vans are late because they have
been stuck in traffic. The price of fuel and maintenance costs
for vehicles is also added to the equation.
The
problems facing the former Avon area are set out in the Joint
Local Transport Plan, which looks ahead to the next five years
and at possible long-term solutions for the next 20 to 30
years for Bristol, South Gloucestershire, North Somerset and
Bath and North East Somerset.
The report says that £300
million needs to be spent urgently to make up for
under-investment in roads and transport if Bristol's economy
is to continue to grow.
Bristol's productivity is
second only to London in the UK and is currently the 34th
highest in Europe - ahead of Berlin, Madrid and Rome. But the
city's success in attracting new investment and jobs could be
blunted if it fails to tackle its growing congestion
problem.
One of the worst congestion blackspots is the
north fringe of Bristol, where more than 30,000 jobs have been
created at Aztec West and Almondsbury business parks, and the
MoD headquarters at Abbey Wood - with virtually no investment
in roads or public transport.
The Joint Local Transport
Plan, which goes before the council on Thursday, said it was
vital to invest in better public transport if Bristol is to
remain the economic powerhouse of the South
West.
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