Villagers bemoan ‘Wild West’ road issues and relentless lorry traffic

Residents of Wattsville say relentless HGV traffic poses a constant nuisance in their village – with cars damaged, round-the-clock noise, and pollution.

Two local councillors said a recent week-long traffic survey recorded nearly 900 lorry movements in “unsocial hours” – and a high-point of 311 HGVs passing through the village in just three hours one morning.

Caerphilly County Borough councillors Jan Jones and Janine Reed said safety risks are “mounting” and warned “urgent action is needed before someone is seriously hurt”.

At a meeting with residents at Wattsville Football Club, on Tuesday March 31, they said HGV traffic has increased by 35% since a 2024 survey, and overall traffic through the village had risen by 11%.

Lorries now make up “one in 12 vehicles” travelling through Wattsville, Cllr Reed told residents at the meeting.

One attendee called the traffic situation “bonkers” and said drivers who paid little regard to the rules of the road had turned the village into the “Wild West”.

Where traffic-calming measures have been introduced, new problems have arisen.

Several residents said drivers simply swerve out into the middle of the road to avoid the village’s several sets of speed bumps.

One said she was “afraid to park on the other side of the street” because she knew several people whose cars had been damaged by passing vehicles.

Another said the comings and goings of lorries in the nighttime hours created a “terrible” noise while people were trying to sleep.

Cllr Reed is planning to submit a question to a cabinet member at next week’s full council meeting, urging him to continue monitoring the traffic in Wattsville.

Ahead of that meeting, Cllr Reed said: “A disabled gentleman who uses a zimmer frame regularly encounters huge HGVs mounting the narrow pavements in Wattsville, to allow oncoming HGVs to pass – I’ve seen the video evidence.”

She added: “Caerphilly Council’s own traffic survey has shown exponentially large amounts of HGV traffic regularly travelling through this residential valley. 

“People should not have to put up with this dangerous situation on a regular basis. It’s not acceptable.”