Petition calls for action on HGV rat running

The petition was signed by 400 residents, including many from Ringmer, where the earlier launch of the petition saw more than 60 residents protesting on Ringmer village green and marching along the main road.

The petition was also signed by residents living near the C7 and in Firle, Newhaven, Ditchling, Glynde, Barcombe and South Chailey. It was submitted in March this year and is now being considered.

Green Party Councillor and prospective Parliamentary Candidate Emily O’Brien said: “Whilst we all support our local HGV drivers and welcome local deliveries, too many HGVs are using our villages and towns as a rat run to get to other places. This county council report admits that Ringmer alone sees 400 lorries a day. That’s an HVG charging through a residential road with scarily narrow pavements every 3.5 minutes.

"And the county council has only counted during working hours - in reality this is a major problem from the early hours of the morning. HGV rat running is damaging air quality, exacerbating our pothole crisis, and causing sheer misery for residents, yet where’s the action?”

The Green Party reported that an unusually high number of residents chose to leave comments in addition to signing the petition. Several parents who responded reported the difficulty of taking buggies and children along narrow pavements and the impact on school journeys. One resident stated “I live in a village where my children can't walk along the main road to school safely due to the extreme amount of HGV traffic. Instead, they are going a longer back route.”

The county council’s report states that there are a number of reasons for HGV traffic along B roads including the use of sat navs which may route traffic away from major roads especially when there is congestion elsewhere.

A spokesperson for East Sussex County Council said: “As few roads across the county are fully suitable for HGVs, the council’s current policy is that these vehicles should be able to use A and B roads across the network rather than be concentrated on a small number of selected roads.

“Restrictions have been put in place on some roads which are considered especially unsuitable for HGVs, but it is important to note that, even with restrictions, HGVs are still able to use these roads if delivering to residential properties or businesses within that area.

“We are in the process of reviewing our Local Transport Plan, which will include the development of a Freight Strategy and consider whether any amendments are necessary to our policy for controlling HGVs or to the freight routing network for the county.

“We can confirm that the petition will be considered at the lead member for transport and environment meeting next week.”

The petition can be viewed at actionnetwork.org/petitions/tell-the-county-council-keep-hgvs-out-of-our-villages