Essex County Council: A12 lorry overtaking ban plan 'not effective'

A ban on lorries overtaking on the A12 in Essex would not be an "effective" way of "reducing congestion", the Highways Agency said.

Essex councillors have agreed a motion calling for restrictions between Mark's Tey and the Boreham Interchange.

Because the road is managed by the agency, no changes would go ahead without its approval.

Hauliers have claimed a ban would lead to a "snake" of lorries preventing others from joining the carriageway.

A spokesperson for the Highways Agency said: "We are committed to getting the best use out of the road network and restricting heavy vehicles from overtaking can sometimes make journeys more reliable and improve safety.

"However, this solution is not appropriate for all sections of our network.

"Preventing lorries from overtaking requires all lorries to travel at the same speed as the slowest vehicle. This can result in long lines of unbroken traffic in lane one, preventing other drivers from joining or leaving the road."

The agency said it had "yet to receive details" of the council's proposal but had previously investigated a lorry overtaking trial for the A12.

The spokesperson added that due to the "frequency of junctions" the agency did not believe an overtaking ban "would provide an effective method of reducing congestion".