I WOULD say all motorists in the Trowbridge area know that the solution to the ever-increasing traffic congestion with increasing frequency of long traffic queues is an outer ring road. Do we say some hope within the next 20 years and keep the thought to ourselves?Surely a major responsibility of the highways department at Wiltshire Council is to limit as much as possible this increasingly serious traffic situation on Trowbridge's central roads.

I would say in respect of highway planning, traffic congestion foresight is paramount. If one looks at the future possibility of a Trowbridge outer ring road its creation looks at present, bearing in mind the present road system,almost impossible. A google map study of Trowbridge seems to makes it look a strong possibility at some time in the future but when who knows! . The old adage is where there's a will there's a way.

At present both housing estates of Studley Green and the Brook Road estate leading to the Broadmead estate are used a lot as rat runs or short cuts. This is because of the much usage of sat nav, especially by large commercial vehicles for the shortest and thus quickest journeys. I suspect residents immediately adjacent to those as used through roads are probably not terribly pleased. I would also be angry because as we know they are residential roads and not through route roads.

Yes these housing estates were built, I would say, more than 25 years ago or thereabouts, but had there been traffic planning foresight then these roads now used through roads could have been made significantly wider, hence rendering them suitable to be used as in effect part of a plausible outer ring road. Although admittedly had this happened then, for today's traffic scenario, extensive traffic calming would be still be necessary and a speed limit of say 25 mph.

Even a slow part ring road is far better than not have anything for this part of west Trowbridge. To remove today's car parking in Brook Road for the Walwayne School car parking, a new car park could be built next to the Lynwood Drive pond waste ground perhaps via the Sherbourne Road, or make the Tesco Express car park bigger towards its rear. Car parking currently on Brook Road for the Walwayne School is ridiculous, particularly at around 3pm, creating both a traffic and pedestrian hazard there.

For this future ring road Brook Road narrows within the vicinity of the Walwayne School therefore for pedestrian safety, lengthy sections of heavy duty steel railings for both road sides here would be necessary to augment the existing sleeping policeman. This for me is really the only part of this possible ring road that might make it implausible but having said that this part of Brook Road could be widened into the grass verge.

To further the ring road course from the Bradford Road end of Brook Road, a new road could be built more or less parallel to Innox Road across the field via Lady Down Farm to connect ultimately at Staverton, perhaps near to the former Nestles factory. Obviously this new road would have to pass over the railway to Bradford on Avon via a new bridge. But this new road may not be able to junction with the end of Brook Road as new housing has been built here where the Citroen Islington garage was. Had this not happened then to complete a large part of this peripheral ring road at west Trowbridge, the Staverton Road would then connect with the Canal Road and then now possible onto the new Hilperton bypass and ultimately join the Ashton road. Yes there would need to be some demolition of buildings and hence rebuilding at Staverton village around near the former Nestles factory.

More examination at the possibility for a part ring road at south west Trowbridge from a google map study, then to travel easterly and crossing the A361 from the Lambrok and church lane peripheral Studley Green roads it could be made possible to go through Southwick Court Farm to join the A363 Spitfire retail park roundabout by building a new short road. A further google map study shows that Drynham lane could be made into a proper road so then this could connect to a roundabout on the West Ashton road.

I do not know if the current upgrading of the connecting road to the West Ashton road from the southern part of the Leap Gate road if it will be widened sufficiently to form part of this plausible ring road. However the southern part of the Leap Gate central road is wider than the northern part of the central Leap Gate road so that this upgraded road should be of the same width as the connecting part to the Leap Gate road.

If the narrower northern part of the central Leap Gate estate through road cannot be widened and hence cannot be considered as a part of this ring road, then another short new road could be built. This would link from the currently being upgraded road between the West Ashton road and the southern part of the Leap Gate road to the Ashton road by crossing the existing narrow green lane. This is very likely to be thought necessary since Leap Gate is essentially a new housing estate and hence being part of a through ring road would not be considered appropriate for part of any future Trowbridge ring road especially by Leap Gate residents.

As this probable new short road crossing Green Lane would connect to the Ashton road then obviously as the Ashton road junctions with the A361 at Hilperton Drive then this would make a complete peripheral ring road for Trowbridge. Result.

And although preferably a dual carriage way, but even as a singular carriage way ring road this would still be a godsend to manage Trowbridge's burgeoning central area serious traffic congestion problems. Surely we all know it can only get worse. These central traffic congestion areas as we all know are Bythesea Road, Trinity Church roundabout, Longfield Road roundabout and County Way. As County Way links the Hilperton road to the Bradley road it is not peripheral to Trowbridge and so I do not see how it can be any part of a future outer ring road. Obviously the purpose of this highly plausible and very necessary ring road it is to enable traffic to get from one side of Trowbridge to the other without having to negotiate through these centre of Trowbridge roads.

Yes as is nearly always the case unfortunately some compulsory purchasing of land and some buildings demolition would be necessary. This highly plausible and very necessary outer ring road would be a massive boost for Trowbridge but we all know there is scant road building or any significant road improvements anywhere in the UK. And with a guess of costing several millions I would say don't expect any part of this ring road on non east Trowbridge being constructed before say 2025 at the earliest.

I wish Wiltshire Council will prove me wrong. But Wiltshire Council in my view ought take good heed of my plausible future outer ring road and even copy file it for it's records. I wonder what route or plans they have for an outer ring road if any or even ever?

A future park and ride for Trowbridge? I only know two people who use them.Why? They are not very convenient especially with bulky or heavy shopping to carry. And are buses not slow and for Trowbridge local services not that often? Lastly but many might say certainly not least, is that Chippenham has a bypass but what does Trowbridge have to prevent central Trowbridge traffic congestion?

P Geering, Lydiard Close, Trowbridge