Public meeting on Shenstone HGVs

The HGV situation in Shenstone village improved considerably in September last year when I helped Wille Betz, the largest HGV user at the time, to move outside the district to a more appropriate location.

Village residents had been plagued by more than 350 lorries, mostly 44 tonnes in weight, driving through the village on narrow and highly inappropriate roads each week. The relief from villagers when they went was palpable. It’s a tough one because the operators were acting completely legally as the real problem is that 40 years ago when the industrial estate was given planning permission nobody envisaged HGVs the size of today’s.

Over the past couple of months it appears a couple of new HGV users have moved into the ex Wille Betz site and HGVs are again on the increase. I arranged for Highways to do a radar count on Pinfold Hill and Lynn Lane and although there are more large lorries than just after when Wille Betz moved out it is still a fraction of when they were there.

Now I need some opinions from residents to see what they think of HGV numbers and also, importantly, whether the number is still causing possible safety issues if they pass in opposite directions on the narrow roads and also how much effect they are having on normal village life.

With that in mind I’ve arranged a public meeting to discuss the situation and I’d like to hear as many opinions from Shenstone people as possible.

It is at the Cooper Room on 4th April at 7pm.

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