WHAT a lot of common sense from Mr Alan Boyes on the subject of traffic calming measures last week!

The measures he so rightly objects to seem to be born of the need to be seen to be doing something without actually doing anything useful.

Ironically, we have a situation at the moment where bodies such as the Civic Trust are lobbying desperately to rid our towns and villages of visual clutter, while the Highways Authority seem bent on disfiguring them with multi-coloured paint and even more signs.

What is doubly infuriating about all this effort is that I suspect the law abiding would probably observe reasonable speed limits with a minimum of signage, while those who couldn't care less are not going to be influenced by a load of red paint.

May I enlarge on one point made by your earlier correspondent?

He jokingly implies that the authorities must have a lot of spare paint to use up.

If only it were so! I recently read a report on the cost of road calming measures which quotes the cost of a speed bump at £1,000. Chicanes such as we have in Davies Road work out at £5,000 each. Pedestrian crossings cost £7,000 and light controlled crossings £18,000.

The cost of making our roads hideous with red paint is about £12 per square metre. Need I say more?

DAVID WAY, Redesmere, Greenhill Park Road, Evesham.