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Data collection
Permanent traffic counters are in continuous operation and monitor traffic levels within Lancashire. This equipment has been installed progressively on cordons around a number of town centres and on screenlines throughout the County from 1997 onwards. These counters provide data of the highest quality and remove the need to rely upon the application of standard seasonal factors.
The assessment of traffic levels has differentiated between those roads for which the County Council is the highway authority, non-core Trunk Roads and the core Trunk Road network. The cordons are located on the perimeters of urban centres at positions where traffic movements into the town centres can best be monitored. The screenlines are located between principal towns.
Urban Cordons and Inter-Urban Screenlines
The traffic data presented in the assessment are 24 hour, 7 day average values and have been analysed on a quarterly basis. At this stage there is insufficient data available to derive factors that could be used with any degree of confidence and so annual traffic levels have been presented. The urban areas that have been assessed are Lancaster and Preston, for which five years data are available, and Accrington and Burnley, for which baseline data are presented. The inter-urban screenlines include Burnley/Pendle, North Rossendale, Preston/Blackburn, Preston/Lancaster, Fylde/Wyre and West Lancashire.
The following abbreviations are used:
AADF - Annual Average Daily Flow
QADF - Quarterly Average Daily Flow
NB: Traffic levels during the first half of 1998 were abnormally low due to major sewer works in the city centre, which caused considerable disruption to traffic conditions. Also, traffic levels at specific locations on the cordon between April 2000 and March 2001 were affected by the construction of a new bus station.
7 Day, 24 Hour Average Traffic Flow
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
92200
92300
93300
92600
92800
93600
93600
93800
187400
188200
185100
183200
179700
180900
180400
180600
83200
82300
82300
81700
81100
82300
152100
150000
146800
147200
149300
150500
Note: Only complete AADF are included in the above table.
The opening of the M65 extension to M6 and M61 (Blackburn Southern Bypass) is likely to have contributed significantly to the increased flows on this screenline between 1997 and 1998.
The opening of the M65 extension to M6 and M61 (Blackburn Southern Bypass) had a major effect upon traffic levels across the screenline.
Screenline Summary
7 Day, 24 Hour Average Daily Flow
75,400
75,800
78,000
80,100
81,700
75,400
75,800
78,000
80,100
81,700
76500
77,000
79,600
82,600
82,800
41,000
40,800
42,000
43,500
43,400
6,000
5,800
6,100
6,200
6200
29,500
30,400
31,500
32,900
33,200
82,100
81,800
83,600
85,000
85,900
15,300
14,900
15,300
15,400
15,000
66,800
66,900
68,300
69,600
70,900
93,400
96,300
99,300
101,400
102,800
39,700
39,400
40,100
40,400
40,200
12,600
14,100
14,700
13,900
13,900
41,100
42,800
44,500
47,100
48,700
110,700
110,600
114,000
115,000
114,800
55,200
53,400
53,700
55,100
54,200
55,500
57,200
60,300
59,900
60,600
44,400
44,500
44,200
45,100
45,100
15,200
15,300
15,200
15,700
15,600
29,200
29,200
29,200
29,400
29,500
Table shows last 5 years data only
Urban Traffic Growth
The urban cordon charts show that in al the urban areas the growth of traffic is below the target maximum growth over the Local Transport Plan period. The growth is measured from the baseline year of 1999. The growth for each urban area is as follows: -
0%
+.033%
+1.30%
-1.42%
Annual Traffic Volumes by Types of Road
The analysis of the screenlines by type of road show that the growth in traffic on Lancashire County Council roads is 2.71% since the baseline year of 1999 and the growth on non-trunk core roads is 2.06% over the same period. These are both below the maximum target growth of 1% per annum (5%) in total. The highest growth in traffic is shown on motorways and core trunk roads being 10.85% since the baseline year of 1999.
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