WORRIED residents have appealed for lorries and other HGVs to be restricted along a busy but narrow road in Burton and Winkton.

A petition signed by hundreds of villagers has been handed over to Dorset County councillor David Jones, calling for the movements of large vehicles to be restricted from Stony Lane roundabout to the county boundary at Sopley.

The issue was taken to Burton Parish Council by resident Alan Slater, which prompted parish councillor Helen Gwinnett to start a petition, signed by nearly 500 people.

Mrs Gwinnett said: “Mr Slater came to a meeting with concerns about the lorries and HGVs travelling along the B3347 through Burton and Winkton. He said they are starting at very early hours of the morning – around 4am – with the noise from the road exacerbated at that time.”

She said up until the late 1960s the road was known as the A338, and was one of the arterial routes from Ringwood to Bournemouth, until the Spur Road was built and the old A338 reclassified.

“Now, HGV drivers are just using the road as an easier way to access Highcliffe, Christchurch and New Milton,” said Mrs Gwinnett.

“While Stony Lane has been closed due to the flooding they have had to use the A338 which has seen a dramatic difference.

“If they can use it when the road is closed, why can’t they use it all the time?

“It is a safety issue. The B3347 is a narrow road, especially by the Fisherman’s Haunt, and the vehicles are often over the middle of the road.

“It’s a danger for pedestrians, other motorists and cyclists.”

The residents are formally asking Dorset County Council to introduce a traffic regulation order to restrict movement on the road.

The petition was presented to Cllr David Jones at a meeting of Burton Parish Council.