The increasing need for traffic calming along Britain’s A and B Road network brings with it a significant problem. How to maintain access for wide loads?

Such a problem was faced by Cambridgeshire County Council. The Romans left a legacy of long straight roads of which this; the old Ermine Street was one. This legacy in modern times enabled unacceptable traffic speeds to dissect village life along its route.

A particular problem, however, was the need to maintain access for what is classified as a designated Wide Load Route. The normal method of carriageway restriction by a traffic island would prevent such movements.

The answer was to construct a lay-by adjacent to the island which, under normal use, would be undetectable to normal road users. To traffic police, however, it would enable wide loads to operate by contra-flow around the island.

The system adopted was a 3 metre wide strip of GRASSCRETE GC2 (150mm deep paving) which, when added to the restricted carriageway, provided an overall access width of 6 metres.