Traffic lights on motorways ridiculous, says MEP

Ukip transport spokesman Jill Seymour said plans to install lights at the junction of the M6 and M62 near Warrington were total nonsense.

Mrs Seymour, Euro MP for the West Midlands who is based in Wellington, said the £7 million trial would lead to an increase in pollution.

She said the Government would do better to spend the money on fixing potholes instead.

Although traffic lights already operate on many slip roads, this is the first time they will have been placed on the motorway itself.

“This is a ridiculous idea, which is wrong on so many levels,” she said.

“It flies in the face of the latest research which shows that pollution is at is worst when cars are sitting in stationary traffic. "And the Government is all too quick to penalise drivers for their emissions these days.

“Why can we not just leave this motorway system alone, and let drivers find their own perfectly sensible ways of merging into the flow of traffic?

The Highways England spokesman said it was "an opportunity to combine existing technology and traffic management systems in a novel way" to provide "lower journey times during peak hours and smoother, more reliable journeys".

Official figures show that the number of vehicles on our roads has risen by more than 30 per cent over the past two decades.

And she said traffic on motorways had grown at a faster rate than on other roads.

"For many people, there is currently no practical or affordable alternative which is fit for purpose.”

A spokesman for Highways England said testing of the lights had already begun, and it would be turned on fully in December.

He said if the scheme was successful, it would be extended to motorway link roads across the country.

Electronic information signs and variable mandatory speed limits on the M62 would also be used to "provide smoother traffic flows".