The map shows the stretch of Leeds/Wakefield Road between points A and B that LAWRRAG is specifically concerned with. The opening of the A1/M1 link allowed for major development in and around Stourton and the Aire Valley. Government guidelines for Planning and for Highways directs that major development and the traffic generated (particularly night-time traffic) should, as far as possible, be kept away from residential areas. The appropriate route for HGV traffic under current guidelines is along the motorway link, ie A-X-B. The Leeds area has many HGV bans in place to protect residential areas from noise and disturbance, the difference in route length between A-X-B and A-B is considerably less than that for many of these diversionary routes. It doesn't take a genius to see that banning HGV traffic from the A-B route (even if it's only a night-time ban) will have negligible effect upon HGV journey times, but a massive impact upon 'the quality of life' for the hundreds of residents living along the route.
