I AM reading the continued discussion about the low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) in The Groves with interest and bemusement.

Since at least the 1960s, town planners and traffic engineers have recognised that excess car movement on residential streets should be avoided.

The two main reasons being safety and efficiency: residential streets are not efficient and excess car movements in these areas increase the likelihood of injuries and fatalities.

LTNs are not new. In York itself, hundreds, if not thousands, of people are living quite happily in LTNs established at various times since the 1960s.

A nice example would be the streets surrounding Wellington Street and Regent Street. Barriers have been in place for many years to prevent motor vehicles cutting through from Heslington Road to Barbican Road or Lawrence Street (A1079). There are no complaints from residents or those who choose to travel by car.

It is unfortunate that the council have had to put in place an LTN in the Groves but the only ones to blame for this situation are those that chose to drive vehicles through a residential area.

The congestion people were trying to avoid with their shortcuts will not disappear if the council remove the LTN from The Groves: it was there before and will continue to be there.

There is only one reason for congestion in York and that is the extra 300 million miles travelled on York roads every year in comparison to 1993.

Gregory Judges,

Fishergate,

York