ONCE again the traffic delays at the Merrie Harrier and Barons Court junctions are in the news.

I refer to a press report in a free issue newspaper in which Plaid AM Chris Franks seeks some good news in reference to the ongoing and soon-to-be exacerbated delays at both sites, owing to the work for the new bus/cycle lanes at the Merrie Harrier.

Now who are we, the motorists, supposed to believe?

On the one hand the remarks by Cllr Geoff Cox, cabinet member for visible and building services, stated that in part the reasons for delay and traffic congestion is down to ever-increasing vehicle ownership.

But on the other hand a national study (Daily Mirror, April 8) states that in fact the number of cars on our roads has gone down for the first time since the Second World War.

It revealed that vehicles totalled 31,035,791 last year – down 0.7 per cent on 2008, because many families have ditched their second cars.

If the recession was to blame for this drop then we in the vicinity of Penarth, Llandough, Dinas Powys and Barry must have missed it – or can Cllr Geoff Cox’s remarks be, to coin a political phrase, an oversight?

The information on the new yellow sign at the Merrie Harrier gives a warning of "possible" delays over 30 weeks.

I would re-word that as "inevitable" delays.

R C Chick Castle Avenue Penarth