IN a moment of madness, I pointed my car towards Chorley instead of Bolton. We left Horwich along the A673, passed the reservoirs to Adlington and instantly noticed something was not as it should be - no white lines, no cycle lanes or chicanes. We continued on through Adlington with extreme caution, encountering a few small roundabouts which, amazingly, controlled the traffic (still no white paint anywhere) arriving in Chorley to find a dual carriageway which sent us round the edge of town. We realised we had to encounter two lanes of traffic both ways, no speed humps, lane reduction or chicanes in sight.

On parking up we realised that a mistake had been made as all the ticket machines were set at very low prices. How we giggled as we put our money in the machine and walked away quickly.

We walked around the shops in the pedestrian area and the central market. We also noticed that the surrounding areas had permit parking for residents. We now realised that Chorley Council had lost the plot, as we have been told regularly by Bolton councillors that resident parking cannot be implemented in Bolton because it doesn't work.

I noticed a swimming baths right near the centre and wandered in, only a couple of pounds to go swimming and close to the railway station (swimming baths in the town centre - I ask you!).

Enough was enough and at this point we decided to risk our lives and return to the sanity of Horwich without injuring any pedestrians or any of the mass cyclists we see using the roads today.

Suffice to say we returned, stress free, after a thoroughly enjoyable inexpensive day out through free-flowing traffic. I know which way to point the car next time. Thank you, Bolton Council and Highway planners for pointing me the right way!

John Howcroft Abbott Street Horwich