WILTSHIRE Council has expressed its opposition and frustration at Bath and North East Somerset (BANES) Council’s proposals to extend its Clean Air Zone (CAZ) due to its potential impact of forcing more HGVs to drive through towns including Westbury.
The leader of Wiltshire Council, cllr Richard Clewer, has written to his BANES counterpart, cllr Kevin Guy, to note Wiltshire Council’s strong opposition to the plans of introducing a charge for Euro VI diesel HGVs exceeding 12 tonnes because of the potential damaging impact on Westbury and other West Wiltshire towns and villages.
Wiltshire Council say the situation is being exacerbated by the continuation of the 18 tonnes weight limit on Cleveland Bridge on the A36 in Bath, despite repairs to the bridge now being substantially complete, which is in turn pushing more HGVs onto West Wiltshire roads.
Cllr Clewer said, “We’re extremely disappointed that BANES is looking to change its Bath CAZ to introduce a charge for Euro VI diesel HGVs exceeding 12 tonnes. These are the cleanest HGVs currently on the market, so this feels less of a clean air initiative and more of a quest to restrict all HGVs in the city.
“This proposal, along with the now extended temporary 18-tonne weight restriction on Cleveland Bridge, is pushing this traffic issue on to Wiltshire roads and through towns such as Bradford on Avon, Corsham and Westbury, and this is something that we are not prepared to accept.
“We recognise that there are regional issues with traffic congestion, air quality and HGV usage, but these will not be solved by simply pushing the problem from Bath into the towns of West Wiltshire.
“The long-term solution needs to be found by working with neighbouring authorities, National Highways, the Department for Transport (DfT) and Defra, not by BANES acting unilaterally and with little regard for the people of Wiltshire.
“We are strongly opposed to both the continued weight restriction on Cleveland Bridge and the proposed CAZ changes and will be looking at all options to formally resist them and to protect West Wiltshire’s towns and villages.
“We remain open to constructive discussions with BANES and other stakeholders to help resolve this issue in the long-term, and to find a resolution that works for all of our communities.”
Cllr Mike Sutton of Westbury Town Council says that through-traffic in Westbury has been an issue for years and would now like to see Wiltshire Council come up with an actual plan.
He said, “Whilst we agree that the CAZ in Bath has impacted on the traffic through Westbury it has only added to a problem that Westbury has experienced for many years. It is difficult to criticise Bath for wanting to protect their residents when Wiltshire council have done nothing to protect us.
“Westbury was declared a poor-quality air zone in 2006 and since then there has been not a single action by the unitary authority to address the issue and one suspects the current concern is more about the effect on surrounding towns and villages than Westbury itself.
“Instead of wringing his hands at the actions of Bath perhaps cllr Clewer would like to address his thoughts to providing an actual plan, costed and timed to address the problems in Westbury and surrounding towns. It is very much like the Wiltshire climate change document, high on rhetoric low on actions.”
