Journey times decrease

Journey times across Rochdale Borough have got better in the last two years, in line with the improvement seen in the rest of Greater Manchester, except Oldham.

According to the Department for Transport it is four seconds quicker to travel a mile across the borough than it was in 2007/08.

It was five seconds on average slower per mile than two years ago in neighbouring Oldham.

Eight council areas across the region recorded falls in the average journey time with Stockport seeing a 19-second decrease per mile.

This means congestion has fallen across Greater Manchester since the public voted overwhelmingly against introducing a congestion charge in the region.

Nearly two million people were asked to decide on a peak-time road charge to open up a £2.8bn transport investment - people in the Borough of Rochdale voted against the plans.

The DfT report also shows the average number of miles travelled per journey by Greater Manchester drivers fell by 4 per cent in the two years.

The figures look at congestion in 10 areas, including London.

The report states: “Seven out of the 10 urban areas have experienced a decrease in congestion by two per cent or more, as measured by person journey times.

“None of the 10 urban areas have experienced an increase in congestion.”

A Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive spokesman said: “It is widely accepted that the current economic situation is impacting on traffic levels across the UK.”