MP and Preston Bus boss call for urgent action on M6 safety
Mr Calderbank said he was deeply concerned about the long-term effects the traffic problems would have on "public confidence in our services".He said the motorway closures "have directly impacted our bus services, our drivers, and most importantly, our passengers".Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Transport Lillian Greenwood agreed to meet Ellis to discuss the issues after she raised her concerns in the House of Commons.
There was a serious collision between a van and a lorry on the motorway on 15 May between junction 31a and junction 32.The M6 was also closed due to a lorry fire on 22 May near junction 31 causing delays and congestion as commuters tried to find a way around.Mr Calderbank said the knock-on effect meant the private bus company experienced a month's worth of cancellations on one day.His open letter said following the lorry fire "severe disruption" included:70 individual bus journeys, amounting to over 350 miles, had to be cancelled By 16:00 BST not a single Preston Bus service in Preston was running on timeBuses were taking well over an hour to travel between Royal Preston Hospital and the city centre.Ms Ellis told MPs "economic growth requires people to be able to get to work".She said: "Yet another road traffic accident has had a hugely disruptive impact on the mainly small roads around it in my constituency."Yet again, my residents in Longridge, Grimsargh and all the surrounding areas woke up to the prospect of another journey to work that takes two hours instead of 20 minutes, and this is becoming a monthly, if not weekly, occurrence."
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