A lorry ban will apply on various diversion routes of the AC de Graafweg from next week. The province of North Holland and the municipalities of Medemblik and Opmeer announced this today. Local residents have complained several times about freight traffic, which is diverted due to work and causes nuisance on the outdated roads.
Road works due to a redesign of the AC de Graafweg have caused traffic to be diverted in recent weeks. This is done, among other things, on the Spanbroekerweg in Spanbroek and the Westerstraat in Sijbekarspel.
Since the road closure, the province and municipalities have received many reports about the nuisance caused by freight traffic on these local diversions. Cyclists and pedestrians no longer feel safe on the road. Residents report noise nuisance, vibrations and damaged verges.
The province of North Holland and the two West Frisian municipalities announced last week that they were satisfied with the additional measures taken on the diversion routes, and that they would continue to discuss a temporary ban on freight traffic. They have now made a decision on this.
Destination traffic
Today it has become known that a temporary ban on freight traffic will be imposed on Westerstraat, Tramweg and Wadway. The ban will take effect on Monday 6 March and will last until mid-April, when the first phase of the road closure on the AC de Graafweg has been completed.
The temporary ban does not apply to trucks belonging to residents and businesses on the local diversion routes, and to their suppliers. They can request a special vignette from the province to demonstrate that they have an exemption.
Henk Messchendorp, one of the residents on Westerstraat in Sijbekarspel, has been campaigning for years to restore the outdated road where he lives. He’s happy with the ban coming in next week because they become ‘crazy’ of the nuisance.
“It’s great! This means a great victory for us as local residents,” he explains when WEEFF/NH News calls him for a first reaction. According to the local resident, there has been quite a bit of frustration among several residents of Westerstraat in recent weeks.
“This is because we had already indicated at the first meeting about the closure and diversion that this would cause a nuisance. Then it was dismissed as something that would not be too bad,” he explains. “It was also said that it would be a few weekend closures. However, practice has shown otherwise. I think it’s great that the ban will come after all.”