Norwich Council have narrowly voted in favour of allowing HGVs to use bus lanes when entering the city. The scheme, which was opposed by cyclist groups, hopes to alleviate congestion on main roads.

The forward-looking scheme will help with congestion. Bus lanes, although taking up half the road on approaches to Norwich, are only utilised by 10% of the traffic. This forces the other 90% (including HGVs) to sit in solid traffic, which causes more emissions, more noise and loses business £millions. By allowing HGVs to travel in the bus lanes, Norwich can ensure that delivery of fresh produce and consumer goods can arrive safely, quickly and with less impact on the environment.

Adrian Gunson, a voting member on the committee, supported the scheme and saw the benefits for the city as a whole.

He said: “The point is we’ve been asked today by those who are opposed to it to treat it as if Norwich is exclusive to cyclists”.

This sensible approach would work well in other cities - especially London, where roads have been hi-jacked by cyclists lobbies - yet cyclists account for no more than 9% of road traffic in the city.

Allowing HGVs and private cars (if they are occupied by two or more passengers) to use bus lanes in the Capital would be a remarkable step forward. An unavoidable fact of our ‘home shopping’ generation, is that more and more goods need to be transported by HGV. Every Tesco / Ocado home delivery needs a qualified HGV driver - and the roads need to accommodate this fact.

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