Department for Transport will look to support Sat Nav scheme

The Department for Transport will be sending a representative to the next meeting of the South West Regional Freight Forum, following Bath MP Don Foster’s request that they support a local pilot scheme which will see local authorities provide appropriate routes to Sat Nav companies.

In reply to Don’s letter, sent on the 12th August, Paul Clark MP the Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Transport states that the work undertaken “sounds potentially very promising”.

Lib Dems in Bath have been backing calls for more appropriate routes for traffic, especially HGVs, and encouraged Bath & North East Somerset Council to start sending a representative to the Freight Forum. Now the DfT will be represented at the meetings and will “consider what support [they] can provide.”

Bath MP Don said, “I am pleased that the Department for Transport are showing a keen interest in this project. I have highlighted a number of areas in Bath where HGVs are using totally inappropriate routes and getting these routes removed from Sat Nav maps will be a big step to helping resolve the problem.

SATNAV misery

B&NES councillors Neil Butters and Ian Gilchrist, together with MP Don Foster, are working on a number of ideas to reduce the common problem of lorries guided by SatNav taking bad routes through the area and frequently getting stuck.

The problem has been highlighted recently by such cases occurring in Freshford and also in Greenway Lane, Bath. When a lorry does get stuck it is not only inconvenient to the driver but also massively inconvenient to locals who may be unable to use that route for several hours.

If you have any issues please contact us at weston@bathlibdems.org.uk