CPRE welcomes Pickles call to de-clutter the countryside

26 August 2010

The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) was today (Thursday) celebrating moves by the government to take action on signage clutter. communities secretary Eric Pickles and Transport Secretary Philip Hammond are writing to councils to ask them to 'cut the clutter', echoing calls first made by CPRE in 1996 in its groundbreaking report 'The Cluttered Countryside.'

Ralph Smyth, senior transport campaigner for CPRE, says: "Clutter needs to be tackled in both rural and urban areas. With every local council in England drawing up new Local Transport Plans, this welcome move by Eric Pickles and Philip Hammond could not be better timed. Clutter is not just ugly - it’s expensive and distracts drivers."

CPRE believes that the greatest potential to cut clutter is on minor country roads and residential streets. Due to a one-size fits all approach, these are often treated the same as main roads, despite different needs. In 2006 a survey by CPRE Hampshire of a seven mile section of the B3006 in the South Downs National Park revealed there were on average of 45 signs per mile. The branch is now working with Hampshire County Council to reduce the number of signs and use locally distinctive features to calm traffic.

Ralph Smyth concluded: "A sign added here and a sign there over time can become a forest of traffic signs. Strong policies against cluttered streetscapes and landscapes need to be backed up by clutter audits to assess the problem. With public spending limited and the public calling for action, it makes sense to encourage community groups to assess and address the problem in the local areas they know best."