The ‘Campaign for Better Transport (CBT)’ has called for the UK government to limit the new 18.55 metre heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) – currently on road trials – to be limited to designated HGV routes within towns and cities. This is designed to protect pavements and property, reduce the risks to more vulnerable road users and ease the financial burden on local authorities. The CBT pointed to the government’s own tests which showed that the new longer lorries have a greater tail swing, increased driver blind spots and inferior manoeuvrability. CBT’s Philippa Edmunds said: “The freight industry needs access to their depots on urban roads within towns and cities to be able to function efficiently, however many urban junctions would simply not be able to accommodate these vehicles, forcing them to mount kerbs, traffic islands or enter adjacent lanes when turning. “Therefore, it is imperative that the longer HGVs are restricted to designated local authority routes agreed by the local authority and the operator.”
Call to limit UK’s long lorries to designated routes
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