The Petition of people of Boston and the Boston Bypass Pressure Group,

Declares that they are dissatisfied with the short-term road strategy proposed by Lincolnshire County council for Boston and want a major road scheme to allow traffic to flow around, and have access to, the town centre, to ease the appalling congestion and prevent damaging economic and environmental impacts upon Boston.

The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Transport to give recognition to the needs of the failing road infrastructure of Boston and South East Lincolnshire; and further urges the Government to make Boston a special case for investment to improve the social, environmental and economic conditions of the town.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Mark Simmonds, Official Report, 12 December 2007; Vol. 469, c. 430.] [P000075]

Observations from the Secretary of State for Transport:

It is for Lincolnshire County Council, as the local highway authority, to determine priorities for local transport investment and to make bids for funding through the Regional Funding Allocation (RFA) process for major transport schemes i.e. the regional statement of priorities for transport investment.

In July 2005, the Government asked each English region to submit advice about how the anticipated funding available for major transport schemes should be allocated over the next ten years. This involved each region determining the relative priorities of its proposed transport schemes in the light of an anticipated regional budget. Throughout, Lincolnshire County Council was fully engaged in this process. A proposed Bypass for Boston was not put forward for assessment by the Council as part of the process and did not, therefore, receive priority for funding in the East Midlands advice submitted to the Government in January 2006 which was accepted by the Government in July 2006. A bypass of Boston does not therefore feature as a scheme to be delivered before 2015/16.

As part of the Government’s response to the regions in July 2006, Ministers have stated that they expect to hold a further round of the regional funding process in the next three years. This will provide a further opportunity for supporters of a bypass for Boston to make sure the case for a scheme is heard within the region.