Drivers of a popular vehicle could be banned from passing through a major town as new weight restrictions get considered by a local authority.
Oxfordshire County Council has received proposals for a new 18-tonne weight restriction across Henley-on-Thames which it has currently taken under consideration.
The proposals would ban larger vehicles from travelling through the town
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Industrial cranes, excavation machinery and other large plant equipment were mistakenly omitted from the original assessment. This error led to conclusions that appeared inconsistent with the actual traffic data collected.
The council has now confirmed it will conduct a fresh analysis incorporating all heavy vehicle types. The option of implementing an 18-tonne weight limit, previously dismissed in the initial highways department report, has been reinstated for consideration.
Local campaign group Henley HGV Watch has been documenting the increasing flow of heavy vehicles through the town for over four years.
The organisation has systematically submitted photographic evidence to Oxfordshire County Council’s highways department since early 2021.
Campaigners have been calling on the council to change its plans and ban HGVs from the streets
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GETTYThe group warned that heavy traffic has intensified since 2020, when the council removed specific wording from its official lorry route map. The deleted statement had declared: “Henley is unsuitable for through HGVs.”
This modification appears to have influenced route-planning software, resulting in more heavy vehicles being directed from the M4 motorway through Henley via the A4130, continuing to the A34 at Didcot.
The diversion occurs when this route offers marginal time savings compared to alternative routes.
Council officials acknowledged that vehicles categorised as “plant” had been wrongly excluded from their initial analysis, which explained why their conclusions seemed completely inconsistent with the collected raw data. These vehicles will now be incorporated into the revised assessment.
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Amanda Chumas from Henley HGV Watch told the Henley Herald: “It makes no sense at all to exclude such a large category of heavy vehicles. We see heavy cranes, and industrial plant and equipment pass through our town regularly, but last Thursday’s sighting of a bridge carried through town on three HGVs may have been a first.”
She emphasised that such heavy equipment should not utilise the town merely as a river crossing point, particularly given the existing structural concerns about Henley Bridge.
According to reports, the Grade I listed Henley Bridge showed evidence of structural stress, with a substantial crack visible on the fifth arch closest to the Angel pub.
This fracture extends from just above the water level approximately two-thirds around the underside of the arch.While repairs using resin have been attempted on this and other cracks, campaigners question the bridge’s ability to withstand continued heavy vehicle traffic.
The road ban would see HGVs weighing 18 tonnes unable to pass through the town
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PAMs Chumas asked: “How long can our grade 1 listed bridge be expected to take this sort of punishment?” Beyond structural concerns, local residents have raised safety issues. Adrian Gregory, a three-year resident, observed that the increasing volume of large HGVs “endanger pedestrians, buildings and health.”
He noted substantial numbers of heavy vehicles travelling through New Street before crossing the bridge. The proposals have garnered support from various quarters, with Sir Ian Prosser expressing dismay at the council’s 2020 decision to remove the advisory against through HGVs.
Mr Gregory described feeling “horrified” by the change, noting that damage and danger from HGV traffic made Henley “clearly totally unsuitable” for such vehicles.
Claire Hewitt questioned why South Oxfordshire District Council had not taken immediate action despite extensive written and photographic evidence demonstrating harm to bridges, roads and buildings. She asked: “What does it take to get sensible, meaningful action?”
