A PETITION to prevent traffic restrictions on the Holyhead Road in Coventry amid air quality concerns has drawn more than 400 signatures.
It follows another petition to prevent the closure of Coundon Road which now has nearly 3,550 names.
Campaigner Mattie Heaven has questioned the need for the restrictions as part of the city’s pollution-busting Local Air Quality Action Plan.
There will be an introduction of peak-time traffic restrictions between the railway bridge and the ring road junction, with an inbound traffic closure in the morning and outbound in the evening.
Traffic lights would also be removed at the Barras Lane junction, which is a major bottleneck contributing to the poor air quality on Holyhead Road.
Holyhead Road was recently judged to be the most polluting road in the West Midlands by green charity Friends of the Earth.
Ms Heaven says the measure will push traffic onto surrounding roads and do little to minimise emissions in the city.
She says on the petition page: “This petition calls upon Coventry City Council to review their proposal for peak time restriction on the Holyhead Road, which will have an impact on traffic and pollution on the surrounding roads including the Allesley Old Road.
“It is also evident that the council needs to take into account the impact it will have on the local residents and commuters.
“We also request the council looks at other means of reducing air pollution, using accurate and up-to-date data and including additional consultation with local residents in regards to the Coventry Air Quality Action Plan.”
In response to the Holyhead Road petition, a council spokesperson said: “The plan – in response to an instruction by the government for local towns and cities to reduce NO2 levels – includes a range of measures intended to improve air quality on Holyhead Road, which would also enable the removal of the traffic lights at the Barras Lane junction, and a major bottleneck contributing to the poor air quality on Holyhead Road.
“However, the council recognises that any traffic restriction will impact upon residents and traffic users, and should the scheme come forward as part of the final action plan agreed with government, there will be extensive consultation with the local community and with statutory bodies including bus and taxi companies.
“At the same time our modelling has already identified the potential need to develop a scheme to improve capacity at Spon End to ensure that the Allesley Old Road route is better able to handle traffic flows, and some funding has been secured to allow this scheme to be developed.
“There will be full consultation on the Spon End scheme as it progresses through the design process, including statutory processes such as planning permission where this is required.
“The final package of measures to be included in the Action Plan will be subject to formal consultation later this year but the feedback received from recent engagement events, and from the petitions received by the council, will be taken into account as the final plan is developed.”
