Sidmouth county councillor and highways chief Stuart Hughes has warned that increased traffic on the county's roads could put the progress the area's made under the coronavirus lock down at risk.

A sample from 10 automatic traffic counters on Devon's A-roads have shown that traffic volumes have started to creep up over the past week.

During the first two weeks of the lock down, there was a dramatic reduction in traffic – around 69 per cent down on 2019 figures – with daily trips on those roads dropping from 178,000 last year to around 57,000.

But Devon County Council has revealed that over the last week, around 10,000 more daily journeys have been recorded by the same traffic counters. Weekday flows are currently averaging around 70,000 trips per day at the 10 sites – 61 per cent down year-on-year – with seven-day flows up by 20 per cent since the end of March

Over the last month, more businesses have re-opened following initial closures as a result of the lock down, and the Easter holiday period has passed with would have also seen fewer people in work.

However, the morning traffic flows between 8am and 9am have only seen a small rise in the last week – an average of 21 trips per traffic counter site. As only 210 of the extra 10,000 journeys took place in that hour, a council spokesman said it appeared that most of the increased trips are taking place outside of the traditional morning peak hour.

And although traffic speeds are still being analysed, early indications are that average speeds have also increased during the lock down period, and a greater proportion of traffic is travelling above speed limits.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Highway Management, said: "It is, of course, a concern to see any increase in traffic flows on Devon's roads, but what we're seeing reflects the national picture. The lock down restrictions are tough on all of us, but I would urge everyone to think about whether you need to make your journey.

"We've all heard the messages about staying at home to protect the NHS and save lives, and we should thank everyone who has stuck to that because we've seen that you are making a difference.

"The South West has the lowest rate of hospital coronavirus cases in the country, and everyone in our region has helped play a part in that by observing the lock down restrictions. We can't let that go now, particularly with a Bank Holiday coming up.

"If everyone starts travelling around Devon it may not take much for us to lose the progress we've made. Please continue with your efforts – stay at home and only make essential journeys."