Local authorities have a few statutory duties associated with road transport. These are mainly included in the road traffic act and traffic management. They are related to managing speed and minimising collisions and protecting vulnerable road users on the public highway.

This can be done on main using all kinds of things from signs to to narrowing carriageways. Junctions that are busy with motor traffic and people can have crossings. Where necessary you can add more punitive things like cameras and additional police enforcement.

You can't do this if all this traffic is flowing through residential areas away from the main road network. People driving then transfer main road behaviour into the places people live. This includes speeds and volumes that don't work in narrow spaces with obstacles and corners.

You can add humps, flashing signs, smiley faces and dropped kerbs but the anti social issues of through traffic will remain. People who drive will still take the shortest route. The only way to manage this is to control this traffic on the main road network.

By doing this all the side road junctions on main roads become safer too. Why? Because people aren't using them in a rush to get in and out of the main road anymore. People cycling and walking along it become more frequent than those turning in and out.

This means you can then prioritise those people, shopping, cycling or walking to work or school

There is of course the issues around our town centres, schools etc being often located on what are still considered main roads in towns and cities. But by not trying to manage the problem we lose control and have traffic everywhere.

This is where we are in most towns and cities in the UK right now