Issue - meetings

Councillor Tim Warren made an ad hoc statement in which he agreed that Bath had a congestion problem, but said that the current proposals would not help.

Councillor Martin Veal made an ad hoc statement in which he said that he had fought for a partial ban for a number of years.  He felt that vehicles should use the A350, but was disappointed that Wiltshire would not help.  He pointed out the link between HGV traffic and the damage to cellars along their route.

Cate Le Grice-Mack FRSA, (chair of the Norton Radstock Regeneration Company) made an ad hoc statement in which she appealed to the Cabinet not to approve the proposals, which she felt would damage Radstock.

Councillor Roger Symonds, in proposing the item, said that the proposals were for an 18-month trial period only, but would be a start after years of suffering the consequences of heavy traffic on this route.  He said that some research had been done on destination analysis; The Council was in discussions with Wiltshire, although they objected to some proposals.  He felt that most of the problems were not being caused by Bath traffic, but by traffic which wanted to pass through the city and the proposals were long overdue.

Councillor Symonds responded to Councillor Veal’s comment about the damage to cellars by saying that there was a weight limit in force to protect cellars, but it was not effectively enforced by the police.  If the council had this responsibility, it would enforce the limit more rigorously.

Councillor Paul Crossley seconded the proposal and said that the proposals were an experiment, which would inform the debate when long-term solutions were being discussed.  He felt that ministers should be made aware that many lorry drivers use sat navs designed for use by car drivers, the effect of which is that they take inappropriate routes.

Councillor Tim Ball said that the problem had been repeatedly deferred and he felt that now was the time to hold this 18-month experiment because the council must find a way to deter heavy vehicles from using the city as a through route.

Councillor Symonds summed up by saying that Bath was a World Heritage City – the only whole city awarded that status in the UK – and it must be protected.  If the 18-month ban proved successful, he would want to move to a full ban on Cleveland Bridge.

Rationale

The proposals will reduce congestion and pollution on the A4 and A36 through Bath by reducing through HGV traffic movements. An experimental Traffic Regulation Order will allow before and after monitoring to take place to establish the impact of the weight restriction before a final decision is made.

Other Options Considered

The Bristol to South Coast Study considered options for building a link road between the A46 and the A36 to remove through traffic from Bath, and, whilst there are significant benefits for road users, the cost and environmental impact of a link road are also significant and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 61