We'd rather queue than take the bus

Forget the bus we'd rather sit in a traffic jam, according to new research by the RAC.

Opposition to local road-charging schemes has also hardened, even though 61% of drivers believe that congestion will increase over the next five years.

The survey also found that:

•53% of drivers prefer to risk traffic jams than take public transport
•77% think more buses would tackle traffic growth
•41% consider congestion to be a serious problem in their local area
•61% think congestion will get worse over the next five years
•44% oppose any form of congestion charge for town centres and cities - even if the money is spent on improving local transport
•Support for congestion charging has fallen from 54% to 31% since 2001
•Just three out of ten drivers think it's likely that they'll use public transport for a journey they currently make by car over the next year

Sceptical population
Professor Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation, said: 'Over time people have come to regard congestion as less of an issue. This flies in the face of the fact that congestion is increasing, though, so the depressing reality is that motorists have become resigned to it.

'It is apparent that radical approaches to easing congestion will be difficult for politicians to sell to a sceptical population.'