The Terrace and Barnes High Street deserve more protection from heavy goods vehicles
Story 184: And Richmond council could be about to provide it
Welcome to Bridged2050: ideas for living well and responsibly in a climate-ready Barnes
The Terrace is one of the most distinctive roads in Barnes. It runs beside the river, past some of the area’s most historic buildings, and ought to feel like part of the village at its best.
Instead, earlier this week, a traffic count lasting less than two hours recorded a dozen 18-tonne lorries using this stretch of road. This may have been the thirteenth but the make and model eluded the traffic spotter.
Unless these vehicles were making deliveries, they appeared to be at odds with the restriction shown on this sign near the White Hart.
The traffic count was carried out on behalf of the Barnes Community Association (BCA) Travel Barnes group ahead of Monday’s meeitng of Richmond council’s Transport and Air Quiality committee.
The committee is due to discuss the BCA’s petition for a 7.5-tonne weight limit on both The Terrace and Barnes High Street. Supporters argue that this would bring the route more closely into line with similarly sensitive roads elsewhere in the borough, including central Richmond, Kew Village, Sion Road in Twickenham, Teddington and Petersham.
That would be a meaningful change.
The current 18-tonne limit permits a much broader range of large goods vehicles to use the route. During the same count, at least six other wagons were identified that appeared to fall between 7.5-tonnes and 18-tonnes.
The issue has a longer history. An HGV ban introduced in the 1980s helped reduce heavy traffic, but the weight limit was later raised to 18-tonnes. The result is that sizeable multi-axle vehicles can now lawfully use a road that feels, and should feel, far more like part of riverside Barnes than a freight corridor.
The proposal has the backing of the two Liberal Democrat councillors for Mortlake and Barnes Common ward. Tony Paterson and Anton McNulty-Howard have supported a 7.5-tonne limit, excluding buses, arguing in their newsletter that it would improve safety, protect heritage buildings and reduce pollution.
Notes & thoughts
The Terrace is the most undervalued road on the peninsula relative to its potential. It could be spectacular.
As long as 18-tonne lorries can use the riverside, Barnes continues to offer a through-route for heavy goods vehicles that reaches beyond The Terrace and into Barnes High Street, Station Road and Mill Hill Road. That may suit the transport network. It does not suit the place.
Bridged2050 has argued before that The Terrace should be reclaimed for the people who live here. This petition is not the whole answer, but it is a serious and sensible step in that direction.
One other thing.
Councillors on Monday should remember the petition make two requests: a lower weight limit, and proper enforcement.
The Liberal Democrat majority occasionally prefer a ‘better angels’ approach to enforcement. That didn’t work for the 18-tonne limit, why would it work for 7.5-tonne?
