A595: HGVs banned during Grizebeck improvement scheme work

 Westmorland and Furness Council made a traffic announcement banning HGVs as part of the A595 Grizebeck Improvement Project.

The multi-million-pound scheme will create a new single-carriageway between Chapels and Grizebeck Village, with the goal of improving road safety and reducing journey times.

The £23.3 project is expected to take two years to complete and will see the construction of a new overpass and a dedicated underpass for agricultural vehicles.

From Wednesday January 15, 2025, a HGV ban will come into force along the A595 from the North of Grizebeck to School Road, Kirkby in Furness. 

According to the council, the ban is required and has been applied for by their contractors due to a number of reasons.

The ban will help cope with the increased traffic through the village and prevent causing congestion and delays.

Due to significant increases in construction traffic while the works are completed, allowing HGVs to continue using the road would worsen the problem.

With an increased number of construction staff members on site and the health and safety risks associated with HGV movements due to the narrow widths and poor visibility, a ban is required.

There is also a lack of stacking and passing space for vehicles of this size when traffic management is required.

Councillor Matt Brereton said: "I appreciate there is a need to mitigate traffic at peak times through the Dove Ford/Dove Bank sections and Grizebeck Village while improvement works get underway in earnest. However, I am not sure this solution will be workable in practice. I am reaching out to officers to understand whether this will be enforceable, and what the impacts will be on local businesses, emergency services, school transport and farm traffic.

Westmorland and Furness councillor, Matt Brereton (Image: Matt Brereton) "One of the problems is that the road is not wide enough to “stack” vehicles if temporary traffic lights are needed. The whole stretch gets snarled up pretty quickly. There are concerns however that people in HGVs will ignore the restriction, or follow unsuitable backroads such as Buckhorn Lane or try to get over Kirkby Moor somehow via Beckside.

"Likewise, the road over Gawthwaite is already at capacity with slow-moving goods vehicles, and the detour all the way to Greenodd and then back along the A590 to Dalton is fairly extensive in terms of additional distance, fuel and time for hauliers. Local businesses will be inordinately affected, with a detour of many miles suddenly imposed that could even risk putting them out of business.

"I would like the Council to properly examine all the options before imposing this restriction – can the road be temporarily widened to better accommodate HGVs, for instance – and I think a proper consultation with business owners, residents, road users and the local Parish Council should be conducted as part of this.

"We have already seen that the knock on effects of road closures, while introduced with the best of intentions, can cause chaos and confusion if not properly thought through. In terms of implementation and enforcement, how will this scheme work, and what will the repercussions be in other parts of the local road network? Traffic on our roads is rather like water running downhill, it will find a way! The flow of vehicles especially at peak times is very hard to control and often leads to unintended problems in other places.

"If all of these justifiable concerns can be answered satisfactorily then I would be happy for a temporary restriction to be imposed, but I do urge for proper consultation and for all perspectives to be considered before imposing a scheme that is unworkable in practice."

Information on the diversion can be found here: https://one.network/tm

The council is welcoming any feedback and comments, which they ask to be emailed to: A595Grizebeck@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk