Campaigners celebrate rat-run victory
Residents in West Hunsbury are celebrating after councillors won a campaign to stop heavy goods vehicles using residential roads in the area as a rat run.
Families in Ladybridge Drive and Hunsbury Hill Road were increasingly frustrated at lorries using residential roads as a short cut to avoid Northampton's Mereway roundabout.
Councillors Paul Varnsverry and Richard Matthews (Lib Dem, West Hunsbury) lobbied Northamptonshire County Council for weight restrictions to be imposed on the road.
And despite an initial setback, they kept up the pressure, forcing a U-turn from the authority,
Councillor Varnsverry, who is also the party's prospective Parliamentary candidate for Northampton South, said: "County Hall originally said our request was ranked 51 on a list of roads to be investigated. Due to budget cuts, officers had little or no cash to undertake the surveys and legal work needed to roll out the weight restrictions."
He added: "Councillor Matthews and I kept up the pressure until finally officers agreed to install 'Local Access Only' signs on local roads.
"These signs stop drivers using residential roads as rat runs for out-of-town trips."
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Weather for Northampton
Saturday 04 February 2012
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