asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the forecast level of car ownership for the West Midlands region for 1990 and 2000; and what effect increased car ownership and use will have on roads in the region in those years.

Car ownership in the West Midlands is expected to grow within the range given in the interim memorandum national traffic forecasts issued by the Department in January 1978. Car ownership is expected to grow to between 0·33 and 039 cars per person by 1990 and to reach between 0·37 and 0·44 cars per person by 2000.This will result in roads becoming more congested where road improvements are not carried out; proposed trunk road schemes are listed in the roads White Paper, and further improvements may be carried out by local authorities which are responsible for other road schemes in the region.