TRAFFIC dramas are continuing in Selborne, as the heavy goods vehicles that cut through the village cause new chaos for residents. The latest incident occurred as the satellite navigation system of an articulated lorry directed the vehicle through the small country lanes of Selborne. As the lorry turned into Honey Lane, it became stuck and caused damage to the garden wall of a Selborne resident. Keith Pritchard, the owner of the property, said: "How long must Selborne villagers have to put up with these ongoing traffic problems? "Thanks to satellite navigation, the Dutch driver heading for Bordon, had been directed off the A3 at the Ham Barn roundabout towards Selborne and had been told to take a right turn down Honey Lane. "In trying to do so, he took half my garden with him and left a long crack in my garden wall. By then the traffic had come to a standstill and despite my efforts to help the driver out of his predicament, some drivers refused to wait, were verbally abusive and tore through the available road space with no care for other cars or pedestrians. It took half an hour for the driver to manoeuvre his enormous lorry back out of Honey Lane without demolishing an electricity pole and the rest of my and my neighbour's garden walls." "This was not an isolated case. Two weeks ago another lorry was unable to complete its journey through the village due to the roadworks, which where well sign posted, and tried to turn around in a restricted space causing damage to the new road surface. "The village of Selborne on the B3006 has a restriction on vehicles over a certain weight and the fact that some drivers are ignoring this, by design or mistake, needs to be addressed. "For us to stop huge lorries coming through our village we need two large signs saying 'No entry for lorries or heavy vehicles', one at the Ham Barn roundabout and the other where drivers come off the A31 onto the B3006. "When such large vehicles try to use village routes there is bound to be damage to the property of both council and residents, and of course it's the residents who ultimately pay for this through the community charge". Mr Pritchard now has three walls to repair on his property, following three separate incidences. He said: "It is supposed to be a country lane, but sometimes it's more like Piccadilly Circus. "I am confident it is possible for our police and council engineers to put their heads together to solve the problem, even if it's something simple such as larger 'restriction' signs which would be hard to ignore." Selborne Parish Council is also keen to see changes made to the traffic coming through the village. The clerk to the parish council, Leah Coney, told The Herald: "The parish council would support any moves to increase the prominence of the weight restriction signage."
