Published at 11:24, Monday, 20 August 2012

The number of lorries travelling through Carlisle city centre is estimated to have dropped by more than a third since the bypass opened.

Information gathered from 20 permanent and temporary traffic counters dotted around the city show the benefits the new road has brought to Carlisle.

Figures reveal a marked reduction in both cars and lorries along the main north to south route through the city – the A7 and A595 – as an average of more than 10,000 vehicles a day now use the new 5.13-mile road.

Carlisle’s busiest stretch of road, the A595 at Castle Way, has shown a 16 per cent reduction in all vehicles from 38,083 a day before the opening of the bypass to 32,050 afterwards.

Other city centre hotspots have shown similar reductions, with the A7 at Stanwix Bank showing a 16 per cent reduction in all vehicles and a 32 per cent reduction in lorries.

The bypass, which runs from junction 44 at Kingstown to the A595, opened to motorists in February.

It has quickly become a key route to travel between the south west of the city and the industrial areas to the north.

Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk