Vehicles could be banned on rural Holmfirth roads in council crack down
Eight different roads would be affected by the scheme
Last updated 22nd Oct 2024
Kirklees Council wants to ban vehicles from using eight roads in Holmfirth as part of efforts to crack down on dangerous driving.
Under the council’s proposals, parts of Scaly Gate, Scar End Lane, Cheese Gate Nab, Ramsden Road, Ramsden Lane, Brownhill Lane, Kiln Bent Road, Holme Woods Lane, Rake Head and Old Gate would be made off-limits to all drivers except emergency vehicles and those given a permit.
The restrictions would come as a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) – a legal order which allows the council to regulate the speed, movement and parking of vehicles and regulate pedestrian movement. A consultation on the draft TRO has recently closed.
Kirklees Council says these routes have seen increased use from vehicles and hopes that a TRO can end nuisance and danger to other highway users, as well as prevent damage to the highways and their surrounding landscape like blocked streams and damaged walls.
However, the Peak District Green Lanes Alliance (PDGLA) has criticised the local authority’s “fatally flawed” consultation. The group is concerned by the absence of information around what the permit scheme would entail, and fears the local authority has been asking the public to comment on the proposal without having the necessary information to do so.
For this reason, they say they can only “speculate” on the nature of the permit scheme and wouldn’t object if they were used solely for residents requiring access. However, PDGLA would “strongly object” if they are to be issued to motorcyclists which they understand “may be the intention”. The group says the routes have been “severely damaged” by recreational 4x4s and motorbikes and feels that the TRO won’t be able to fulfil its purpose if motorbikes are permitted.
They said: “We are opposed to these TROs as drafted if the proposed permit scheme gives continuing access to motorcycles. Only full TROs excluding all types of recreational motor vehicle are sufficient to achieve the Authority’s stated aims for these routes.
“We also think that, because Kirklees has failed to provide any information about the proposed permit scheme, the public cannot reach an informed view and that the consultation is therefore fatally flawed.”