A TRANSPORT consultation document published by the Government today, gives us all hope that there could, at long last, be a serious attempt to solve Britain's traffic congestion problems.

Although no firm decisions have been taken, the Government has made a wide range of suggestions and is to wait for responses before publication of a White Paper next year.

In other words, we at last have a Government which appears to be serious about resolving a situation which is in danger of strangling the country.

We welcome the fact that the problem is being approached with a degree of seriousness and not merely being paid lip service as has happened in the past in a long series of nonsensical debates.

The Government says it is keen to see an integrated system of public transport.

We have argued this for years. It is the only way forward.

The Government is also asking for views on increasing the price of public parking, taxing company car parking spaces and charging for the the use of certain roads.

But other forms of transport have got to be in place before such draconian measures are introduced.

Most of the cars which clutter our towns and cities during the day have only travelled a few miles.

Their drivers have become accustomed to using cars for short journeys to work or the shops because there is no suitable public transport alternative.

When buses were de-regulated a few years ago we said it would decimate services.

It did.

Now the Government is suggesting re-regulation of buses outside London. This would be a vital step towards an integrated transport system.

And the railways have a vital part to play in such a system. Much of the freight which finds its way onto lorries cluttering our roads could be moved by rail, as it is in continental Europe.

Our network was ripped apart by the Beeching cuts in the 1960s. Many of those decisions were simply disgraceful.

But, properly organised, the surviving network is still capable of taking many more people and freight away from our roads.

The Government also wants to see safer cycling and walking routes. We are all for this.

But so far attempts to provide cycle routes in this area have proved ham-fisted. The narrow lanes provided in Church Street, Blackburn and Rishton merely force the cyclist into the main road.

The Government faces a massive problem in tackling traffic congestion. And it has to realise that it cannot cure one ill by tackling another in isolation.

Like the system it must strive to introduce, its approach must be integrated.

The co-operation of the public is vital. Most people realise that things cannot go on as they are.

But they need to be convinced that they can leave their vehicles at home, confident that they will be able to board a bus or train which will get them to their destinations on time and in pleasant conditions.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.