Cumbrian bypass tolls closer
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by Karen Miles • Lorry drivers could see toll booths for the first time on a new bypass if residents of a Cumbrian town get their way.
Discussions are under way in congested Kirkby Stephen on the possibility of trucks paying about L=1.50 to use a new breed of privately-constructed bypass—and residents winning their dream of traffic peace.
Under the scheme, car drivers would also be encouraged to use the bypass with a toll of 10p. Width restrictions in the town would discourage through-driving by bigger vehicles.
The British Road Federation believes the plan could inspire other frustrated communities to follow suit.
About 8,000 vehicles a day, including 800 trucks, travel through the town, which lies on the A685, a cross-Pennine route linking the M6 with the Al. Cumbria County Council shelved 23-year-old plans to build a bypass when it became Labour controlled last year.
The Freight Transport and Road Haulage associations both say that a tolled bypass would be preferable to a lorry ban favoured by the county council. That would involve a 22-mile diversion which, the FTA says, could cost operators more than £8,000 a day.
Jenny Bate, spokeswoman for the Kirkby Stephen Pro-Bypass Group, says: "We want to bring in a scheme to please all parties. We've got HGVs brushing past our properties. We've got noise, pollution and vibration. If you were us you'd fight for a bypass."
Local bulk powder haulier Sam Ostle & Sons says it would like a bypass, but the scheme is just "pie in the sky". • Kent councillors have voted in favour of a pilot lorry ban on rural lanes which, if deemed successful, could be extended throughout the county.
Members of Kent County Council last week approved plans for a 12-month Lorry Ban lone to the east of Paddock Wood. Trucks of more than 7.5 tonnes will be barred from the zone, except for access. But an even tougher ban on vehicles of 3.5 tonnes or more will apply at 10 "plugs" within the zone where no access will be permitted.
The zone's boundary to the south will he the AL, the B2162 to the east and north, and the QM and B2160 to the west.
The county council wants to prevent further damage to carriageways and verges, reduce "visual intrusion", and eliminate the nuisance of truck drivers becoming lost on their way to the Trans Fesa railhead at Paddock Wood.
"Our aim is to protect the most fragile of our rural lanes," says Richard Stubbings, transportation manager for Mid-Kent. it is successful, extending the ban to other parts of the county will be an option."
The council, which sent out 4,000 consultation documents to residents and businesses, is to have further talks with the Road Haulage and Freight Transport associations, and expects to implement the ban next spring.