Lib Dems Act to Stop Lorries Rat Running through Village

11.39.24am GMT Fri 27th Nov 2009

A campaign to stop heavy lorries rat running through Haddenham is being launched by East Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats.

They plan to lobby Cambridgeshire County Council and the government to get the A1421 Station Road downgraded to a B road.

The move would stop lorries cutting through the village from the Witchford bypass to get to the A10 or A14.

Lib Dem Leader and Haddenham Councillor, Gareth Wilson claims Cambridgeshire County Council agreed several years ago that road designations need to be re-examined and that Station Road should be downgraded.

The call for action comes after the county council agreed not to include the A1123 road, which runs through the village to Earith, on a Strategic Freight Route map for lorries.

Now the Lib Dems also want planning consents that involve lorry transport, such as the extension of gravel extraction at Block Fen in Mepal, to carry a condition avoiding village roads such as Station Road and the A1123.

Cllr Wilson said: " Station Road is used by children going to school and they have to walk along narrow pavements with heavy lorries running alongside.

"I am worried that there will be a serious accident. These vehicles have no reason to use this road and it should be downgraded. This would stop a lot of the heavy traffic that comes through Haddenham.

"I was relieved to see that the county council had seen sense in deciding not to include the A1123 on the Strategic Freight Map," added Cllr Wilson. "This would have been disastrous for the village.

"Now we need to go a step further and get Station Road downgraded. Villagers should not have to put up with heavy lorries rat running through when there are alternative routes."