STREAMLINING THE CITIES.

The Institution considers that the present proposals of the Government area insufficient weight to the metropolitan dimension of transport issues, the amount of professional effort required in elucidation, and the difficulty of obtaining voluntary agreement to solutions from executive bodies each of which are responsible for only part of the complex situation. It is important to have an executive body with the powers and finance to tackle a range of transportation problems on a conurbation scale. However, if the Government is not minded to proceed along these lines, as a minimum requirement, the Institution suggests that for each metropolitan area including Greater London there should be an independent Planning Commission charged with the duty of assembling relevant statistics, commissioning metropolitan studies (including socioeconomic and transport issues) and conciliating differences of view among the executives on particular projects.