50,000 CARS A DAY...

From the Echo, first published Thursday 16th Oct 2003.

IF YOU thought traffic was bad already things are only going to get worse.

One of Bournemouth's key bottlenecks, which already sees more than 50,000 cars a day pass through, is set to become even more congested.

Castle Lane East is home to the Royal Bournemouth Hospital, JP Morgan, Bournemouth Crown Court, the Littledown Centre and the Tesco superstore.

Now worried members of the Bournemouth traffic policy group have been told how the number of cars is increasing because employers such as the hospital have recruited more staff.

The hospital says it has no choice but to increase staff if it wants to meet national NHS targets and cut waiting times.

Meanwhile insurance firm IAS is bringing a further 400 staff to the area when it opens new offices on Wessex Fields next to the courts next year.

"All the government does is rant on about green travel plans and how people should be encouraged to abandon their cars and use alternative transport," said Muscliff ward councillor Ron Whittaker, a member of the traffic policy group.

"I ask, what alternative transport? There is none. In the real world that we inhabit, which the government doesn't, people rely on their cars. There's no way that most of us would be able to take their children to school and get to jobs and live their lives if we used just public transport.

"I wonder what planet ministers live on."

Crown court manager Adam Davis said: "On some days when our public car park is full there's nowhere else for people to park. Getting in and out of the court at certain times of the day has always been a headache.

"Our staff and visitors and the hospital's staff and patients only have one exit onto Castle Lane East."

Estates and capital manager at the Royal Bournemouth, John Cawood, said: "We are looking at changing visiting times at the hospital and staggering them, to try and avoid the daily 4.30pm gridlock between office and hospital staff and patients.

"It's got to the point where some of us won't even try to go home until later."