Which was the last part of the British Isles to get traffic lights

A.� This question, from pmarris, is a bit of a poser. There are, for example, big villages that still have no traffic lights. Indeed,�Faversham in Kent, an ancient town of nearly 20,000 souls, has only one set! However, I reckon the answer could be Alderney, one of the Channel Islands.< xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

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Q.� Sounds good to me. How so

A. Alderney, the northernmost of the Channel Islands is only eight miles from France. It has an area of three square miles and a population of 2,400, most live in capital St Anne's. A tourism website boasts: No traffic lights, no roundabouts, no traffic jams. Speed limit: 35mph.

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Q. What about the rest of the islands

A. The group, off the north-west coast of France, 90 miles south of England, comprises Jersey and Guernsey, Alderney, Sark and Herm - and various tiny islets. The total area is about 75 square miles. The fertile soil is well cultivated. The islands send large quantities of early potatoes, tomatoes, grapes, and other fruits and vegetables to the English markets.

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Q.� Sark's also interesting

A.� Sark's smaller,� and allows no cars, although tractors are permitted.�

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Q.� Earliest settlers on the islands

A. First known inhabitants built megalithic tombs. There's evidence of Bronze Age settlements and the Romans built a small fort on the island.

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Q.� After the Norman conquest of Britain

A.� It was occupied by the French from 1338 to 1340. In 1559 it was leased to George Chamberlain. In 1660 it went to Edward de Carteret, who transferred it in 1661 to Sir George Carteret. Sir George's widow sold it to Edmund Andros of Guernsey in about 1682. Then it went to the Le Mesurier family. The island was heavily fortified by the British in the 19^th Century and a garrison was kept there until 1930. The Channel Islands were occupied by the Nazis in the Second World War, the only British territories where this happened, but Alderney's community was evacuated to England in 1940, before the invasion.

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Q.� And now

A.� Alderney is now in the Bailiwick (the area governed by a bailiff) of Guernsey but it has its own local government. The president and States of Alderney (nine members) are elected. Communications are through Guernsey, to which Alderney is linked by air and shipping services. The latest population figure is 2,100.

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Q.� Sark, that's much the same

A.� Sark is seven miles and comprises Great Sark and Little Sark. It covers two square miles and is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. It was a gift from William of Normandy (the Conqueror) to the Mont-Saint-Michel abbey in about 1040. It is still governed feudally, by a seigneur -�famously in recent times by the Dame of Sark, Sibyl Hathaway, from 1927 to 1974.

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Q.� Strange.

A.� Not really. It's a tiny community of just 500. Police, if needed, are supplied from Guernsey. Even the dog population is controlled and only the seigneur may keep a bitch. Dairy farming is the main business, with market gardening. Tourism is mainly through day trips from Guernsey. As well as the car ban, aircraft are prohibited, so Sark may be reached only by boat.

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By Steve Cunningham