Two district councillors are urging Cambridgeshire County Council to ban all lorries, buses and heavy vehicles from crossing the Godmanchester bridge over fears the excessive weight will damage the historic landmark.

Cllr Jeff Dutton and Cllr Colin Hyams – who have the support of Godmanchester Town Council and the civic society – have taken up the campaign after a huge hole made by a lorry in the bridge two years ago took more than a year to repair.

Cllr Dutton wrote to county council leader Cllr Jill Tuck saying something had to be done to preserve the bridge, which leads from Godmanchester to the Huntingdon ring road, after it continued to receive knocks from larger vehicles on its narrow lanes.

Cllr Dutton said: "The bridge is the heritage of both Huntingdon and Godmanchester towns and we all want to see it preserved. The bridge suffers regular damage by heavy and sometimes light goods vehicles.
"The only way to start preserving this bridge is to stop all commercial vehicles from using it. There is a 7.5-tonne weight limit for traffic on the bridge but this is often abused. I believe the bridge should only be used by cars and motorcycles.

"All commercial vehicles, from buses to vans, must be stopped from using it to preserve this ancient bridge for our children and grandchildren to enjoy."

Cllr Dutton and Cllr Hyams are now awaiting a meeting with county council officers to discuss the proposal.

Huntingdon and Godmanchester Civic Society chairman Richard Meredith would like to see traffic calming measures and also have it narrowed to one lane to allow pedestrians and cyclists to use it.

He said: "I am glad that someone has raised the issue at long last. Everybody has wanted to see the bridge protected for a while.

"I would like to see all the lorries and buses off. It is the main connection between Huntingdon and Godmanchester but you have to question if heavy vehicles need to go over.
"We will put our weight behind this campaign. It is an issue which needs to be dealt with as soon as possible."

County councillor Matthew Bradney, Cabinet member for growth and infrastructure, said: "I'm looking into it. I'm all for involving the local members in anything we do.
"There is always a possibility of trying to ban heavy commercial vehicles, but without knowing the full details of this bridge I can't comment. I will speak to officers about it and go from there. But it's really early days."