Council vote to reduce speed limit on stretch of A127

Last night at an extraordinary council meeting, Basildon councillors voted to reduce the speed limit on a stretch of the A127, between Fortune of War roundabout and the Pound Lane junction.

This comes after government instruction to reduce air pollution on the busy road, as reported by Gateway 97.8 last week.

The speed limit is to be reduced from 70mph to 50mph, as voted for by all councillors except one, who abstained.

The government also proposed two other ways to reduce air pollution, including reducing the number of HGV lorries between certain hours and the possibility of a congestion charge – which was rejected by councillors last night.

Last night on Gateway 97.8 Drivetime, Johnny asked council leader Gavin Callaghan if there will be a congestion charge:

To listen to the interview with Cllr Callaghan in full, click here.

The council has also set up an email address, [email protected], for businesses to use to send questions and comments about the Ministerial Direction so the council can deal with queries effectively and efficiently.