ENVIRONMENTALLY-friendly moves to ease traffic problems in Britain's towns and cities could cause more problems for rural areas.

Transport difficulties in areas such as the Ribble Valley could mean that only the wealthy can live comfortably in the countryside, a national group has claimed.

And the Rural Development Commission is pushing to have the rural voice heard in national transport debates.

In a new policy statement - Rural Transport - The Vital Link - the commission claims that the debate about future transport policy is dominated by urban considerations and overlooks the circumstances and needs of countryside communities.

Sparse bus schedules mean hours away from home for short appointments, volunteer and community transport schemes serve the rural communities only a little better, and the majority of elderly without transport must rely on relatives and friends to reach essential services by car.

The commission is calling for national recognition of the dependence of rural people on cars to meet everyday needs while still targeting measures to reduce car use in towns, as well as improvements to public and community transport.

Chairman of the Commission Lord Shuttleworth, said: "Rural people and businesses are more dependent on private transport than their urban counterparts and there is seldom a convenient alternative.

"Measures to curb traffic congestion and pollution should be adopted to tackle problems where they mostly arise - in the larger towns.

"Poor services and transport could increasingly become a social filter in the countryside which will make it more difficult for those other than the well-off to live and work there."

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