Terrible traffic is making life a misery in Maidstone and surrounding villages like Langley, Bearsted and Downswood. Too many people tell me how the daily grind of sitting in long queues, being late for work and delayed getting home is becoming unbearable. At the same time, important bus services are being withdrawn from growing villages like Langley.
I am calling for investment in roads to beat traffic and reduce journey times. We need a proper strategy to tackle congestion and improve our roads. I don’t think a new bus lane on the A274 by itself is the answer to the terrible traffic in the area.
The reality is that people with busy lives will take the quickest route - the fact that Arriva are seeing falling demand for its services suggests that’s not always the bus. Many of my constituents have told me they don’t see the point of a new bus lane when traffic on that road is so bad and people aren’t using the buses. Recently, Arriva has even announced that it will be cutting back number of its services, and stopping some altogether. Langley village, which has seen around 3,000 homes recently built or in the pipeline, will have a key service withdrawn.
Increasing capacity for buses at a time when the main commercial operator does not think people will use them doesn’t add up. That is why I have called for a full rethink of the roads strategy with all options – including a Leeds-Langley relief road – on the table, in a letter to the Planning Inspector following his inquiry into the Local Plan.
In the longer term, more people using buses more often is probably part of the answer for Maidstone's traffic problems once traffic problems have been resolved. That will make the bus a better option for getting around - but a bus lane alone won't solve the problem.
