London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s recent announcement to ban HGVs from operating in London from 2020 could hinder new construction.
The Mineral Products Association (MPA) has warned that the new proposal by the Mayor could undermine already in place schemes such as the Construction Logistics and Cyclist Safety (CLOCS) initiative that have been aimed at making the roads safer from HGVs and construction vehicles and in the long run could negatively impact both road safety and the ability to deliver new homes and infrastructure in the capital.
Last week, Khan announced that a new “direct vision standard” had been devised with TFL.
The new system will rate vehicles according to how well the driver can see the truck’s surroundings. The rating runs from zero to five stars and only lorries and HGVs with a rating of at least three stars will be allowed in to the city by 2024. Under the new standard up to 35,000 zero star-rated HGVs currently operating in London would be banned by 2020.
“We are very disappointed that the mayor has unilaterally decided to ban 35,000 HGVs without any obvious discussion with industry on the implications of his decision.”
Nigel Jackson, chief executive, MPA
However, the MPA stated that the CLOCS initiative had already significantly improved road safety in London as the whole construction supply chain has taken sustained action to train drivers and equip HGVs with additional safety equipment such as cameras and sensors.
Under the new announcement, however, many thousands of HGVs which have been fitted with new technology will be banned from London from 2020, while HGVs that are assessed to have more direct vision but have no equipment to remove HGV blind spots, will be allowed on London’s roads.
MPA believes this lack of recognition of the benefits of technology to help eliminate vehicle blind spots is a potential own goal, as even higher visibility HGVs have blind spots that only technology can eliminate.
It maintains that the banning of all high ground clearance HGVs also ignores the reality that such vehicles are still needed, for example to remove soils and clay from new construction sites and to deliver materials to former mineral workings to enable the restoration of land to beneficial after use.
The proposed banning of HGVs would make it extremely difficult to supply planned construction needs, putting additional housing and infrastructure development at risk in London.
Nigel Jackson, chief executive of the MPA, said: “MPA members are absolutely committed to improving road safety for all vulnerable road users and have been leading supporters of the CLOCS initiative from the outset. This is not just talk, our industry has taken very significant practical action and invested heavily in training and technology.
“We are very disappointed that the mayor has unilaterally decided to ban 35,000 HGVs without any obvious discussion with industry on the implications of his decision.
He added: “We hope that the mayor takes note of the concerns of our sector, which supplies the greatest tonnages of essential products to the construction industry in the capital, and he agrees to engage with the industry as a matter of some urgency.”
