What’s the point of different weight limit signs eg “Except for loading/unloading” and “Except for access”?
Surely there should be some uniformity in these signs? Has anyone ever been stopped/done for going through one and how much proof did you need to show to you were delivering? Some of us were discussing the weight limit in Eynsham off the A40 (traffic lights, turns into Witney Road), as there’s no exemption sign. The thing is, virtually every building site in Eynsham has planning rules that ONLY allow lorries to use this route and not the 2 other ways in through housing estates that have no limit.
How are we meant to know where a weight limit starts and ends? I’ve encountered this where I’ve seen the access sign, driven down road only to find weight limit ends sign and delivery address is just the other side (technically an offence).
except for access could mean if you want to visit your gran you can
I always want access, through the weight limit to the other end!
I think its dates back to the olden days when there were a lot of companies set up in villages and small towns. A lot of transport companies used to have their base in the village so needed access to get to their operating centre.
When there were small manufacturing companies and workshops, HGVs needed to load out of them so were allowed to go down the road to load.
Gloucestershire has it’s own “Lorry Watch”. I gather it’s a bit like Neighbourhood Watch, where nosy people with too much time on their hands write down lorry numbers and report them. Regardless of whether the lorries are delivering or rat runnng. I had a complaint years ago regarding the 25t bridge at Upper Swell; TM rang to have a go at me for driving across it with my 6wheeler. What I had great pleasure in explaining was that, my wagon was in for service, and I was driving a G reg spare which was only 25t gross instead of 26t. I don’t think he rang the customer and stuck up for me though… 
i had a moaning bloke last night in chipping camden, moaning about me going through his village in my 8 wheeler, got the theres a 7.5 ton weight limit here sonny lecture, blah blah, fed of trucks ignoring signs blah blah
so told him well if you dont want the electric back on then ok ill take the generator back 
funny how his attitude changed when the chap from eon turned up to show me where he wanted it sited
Andydisco:
i had a moaning bloke last night in chipping camden, moaning about me going through his village in my 8 wheeler, got the theres a 7.5 ton weight limit here sonny lecture, blah blah, fed of trucks ignoring signs blah blahso told him well if you dont want the electric back on then ok ill take the generator back
funny how his attitude changed when the chap from eon turned up to show me where he wanted it sited
These tossers don’t whinge when they need heating oil, or gravel for their drive though…
Had a funny one the other week , was delivering crushed rubble to a farm . This place is out in the sticks , so came in the only way i knew . Asked the customer whats the best way to come in , he says theres not much in it but you can go a different route , there was a hump back canal bridge but he says its ok theres no weight limit on it .
so off i go to get the next load over canal bridge(no weight limit sign ) 
and back to our yard . Seemed a slightly quicker route so came back the same way loaded , gets to the bridge and there is a weight limit sign 12.5 tonnes 
. Of course being in an 8 wheeler 32 tonne tipper i turned round and took an 8 mile detour 
well ok the next 10 loads i did miss out the bridge 
, seems the local milk tanker driver goes over the bridge every day but maybe only in the direction with no sign 
so is there such thing as a one direction weight limit , or have the local gypo’s removed the sign for scrap 
cheers mike
Yes; Weston on the Green Bridge over the A34; 7.5t from Weston going over to go Southbound; There’s no limit if you come south from M40 and go over towards Ardley. Some meddling old codger wantd an outright ban and nearly got it. When asked on local radio “what happens when the M40 is blocked, where’d the lorries go?” He all but said stuff the lorries. So, a partial limit was imposed but at J10 there are drop down signs that cancel weight limit when there’s a closure. Now the codgers are moaning about Bicester creeping closer to them so affordable housing is now they’re pet hate…
I can think of a few places I pick up from that you have to go through weight limits (except for loading/acess etc). You are however given a set route in and out and are politely requested to stick to it, because if you are caught you are banned from the site.
A682 Manchester road is 7.5t going into Burnley but no limit coming out. Always find this strange, and can’t see any reason for it,
I don’t mind weight restrictions for structural reasons ie weak bridges, but there’s an increasing number of perfectly good roads being restricted; the A46 Cheltenham-Stroud being a good example. Ok, there are narrow stretches like Painswick but I’ve driven worse. Brockworth-Gloucester near the Toby carvery has a pointless weight limit where you get the start of one limit, then it ends and the same in the opposite direction. This has no exemption signs so technically, the dozen or so houses within this limit cannot have any deliveries by lorry. Bloody stupid.
I got shouted at once by a TM when going through a 7.5t weight limit in an artic, however, when i pointed out that i was SOLO, and UNDER 7.5t, there was not a lot more he could say!
It’s got a proper weight limit in Bampton now, but the local council tried to avoid the cost of organizing it at first, so stuck a weight limit on Tadpole Bridge at Buckland Marsh near the A420; They had it signed as weak bridge, 18ton max weight (not Gross). Thus, we used it even with empty artics although we did get memos in wages asking us to only use it if there was no alternative (we couldn’t use the A415 over Newbridge due to quarry planning rules and that bridge is now restricted to 18 MGW and is enforced by Trading Standards and VOSA).
Muckaway:
I don’t mind weight restrictions for structural reasons ie weak bridges, but there’s an increasing number of perfectly good roads being restricted; the A46 Cheltenham-Stroud being a good example. Ok, there are narrow stretches like Painswick but I’ve driven worse. Brockworth-Gloucester near the Toby carvery has a pointless weight limit where you get the start of one limit, then it ends and the same in the opposite direction. This has no exemption signs so technically, the dozen or so houses within this limit cannot have any deliveries by lorry. Bloody stupid.
There’s one of these on Bradford - Wakefield road between Tingley (M62 J28) and M1 J41. The idea is to force all the traffic up to M1/M62 junction at Lofthouse and keep all the nimbies happy but I never bothered, especially in rush hour, just went straight down the weight restriction which lasts for all of 5 ft and cut the corner off. This is simply a nimby restriction and I don’t do those at all.
There’s one of them in Peterborough as well if you’re coming down from the north. You can’t turn right at that rbt and go down that short stretch of d/c to get back to the A1, you’ve got to turn left and then go on a 50 mile detour out to the east then back south right the way round the bottom of the Peterborough and out that way. Clearly another nimby restriction as I’ve always ignored it and there’s no weight issue along that d/c.
Mikey D:
Had a funny one the other week , was delivering crushed rubble to a farm . This place is out in the sticks , so came in the only way i knew . Asked the customer whats the best way to come in , he says theres not much in it but you can go a different route , there was a hump back canal bridge but he says its ok theres no weight limit on it .
so off i go to get the next load over canal bridge(no weight limit sign )well ok the next 10 loads i did miss out the bridge
so is there such thing as a one direction weight limit , or have the local gypo’s removed the sign for scrap
cheers mike
A134 Bury Road in Thetford is 7.5 tonnes southbound and no limit northbound, LGV’s use A11 and then unclassified as detour. residents asked by Norfolk County Council to take details of lorries ignoring limit.
A144 through Bungay northbound uses main road, southbound uses A143 and B1062.
mikewhi:
A682 Manchester road is 7.5t going into Burnley but no limit coming out. Always find this strange, and can’t see any reason for it,
I think its 7.5t one way because its downhill into a busy town centre. Just before the lights theres an escape road for trucks coming down from the res.
What are the penalties if you get caught going down a weight restricted road?
I sometimes deliver to a place in windsor that has a 17T limit. I’m guessing it is for the bridge and sharp bends further on, but the limit starts over a mile away from the bridge and there are no signs saying weak bridge or except for access.
Seen double deck buses and garbage trucks use the road and bridge though.
I’ve told the bosses that there is a 17T limit and they say go there anyway. If I get a fine can I pass the fine on to the company?
I’ve never been to Windsor but it sounds a ■■■■■ from what I’ve read on the signs near the M4.
Muckaway:
I’ve never been to Windsor but it sounds a ■■■■■ from what I’ve read on the signs near the M4.
It’s a place where money speaks, very loudly.