Political

Lib Dems call for rush hour ban on HGVs to ease congestion in London

Caroline Pidgeon Tweet On HGV Campai

Key elements in Caroline Pidgeon’s plan include:

  • Introduce a peak-time ban on HGVs in central London
  • Make use of the River Thames for more freight traffic and during riverside building works
  • Require future large-scale planning permissions to include measures to reduce construction traffic

She says,

As Mayor, I want a new strategy for freight traffic on our roads that includes incentives for switching commercial deliveries to cargo bikes where appropriate, encourage the use of greener vehicles and facilitate the sharing of good practice across the industry.

Freight traffic makes a considerable contribution to London’s congestion problem…

There is research to suggest that 25% of commercial deliveries could be carried out by cargo bikes.

This strategy should include a rush hour ban on HGVs inside the Congestion Charge zone.

The London Assembly recently passed a motion calling for a ban, dependant on the outcome of a TfL impact assessment. We know that 7 out of 8 cycling fatalities in London this year involved collisions with lorries and that 40% of cycling fatalities involving lorries occur in the morning rush hour. Not only do HGVs tend to clog up the roads in central London, they are also dangerous for cyclists. Some form of peak time HGV ban, including construction traffic, could help ease congestion and make London’s roads safer.

Sign up here to back Caroline Pidgeon’s campaign for London Mayor, and read more about the Lib Dem plans in the 2016 London Liberal Democrat manifesto.

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