People are “angry, incredulous, and very frustrated” at a council’s attempts to remove restrictions that limit the number of 26 tonne refuse lorries driving along small residential roads used by children as they try to walk to school.

Elmbridge Borough Council has submitted an application to get rid of restrictions that limited Heavy Goods Vehicles from using narrow streets near Cranmore Primary and Esher High during the busy school runs.

Currently, Douglas Road and The Woodlands are off-limits to HGVs using the Esher Depot in Mill Road between 8am and 9am and 2.45pm to 3.45pm on school days – with tighter restrictions on weekends.

The council said it needs to relax the protective measures “to keep waste services running smoothly and efficiently” – but many of those living nearby are fuming at the prospect.

Denise Pavey, said: “The council is trying to remove all conditions on refuse vehicles out of the depot and through residential roads.

“The depot was put there in 1997 with those strict conditions to protect the lives of residents. In 2016, an application was made to take away all those conditions but it was decided that there would be a bit of relaxation but most would remain.

“Noise pollution, antisocial hours, vibrations, Cranleigh School and Esher High, thousands of people will be directly affected. If it were to go through, people are threatening legal action against the council.

“There are lots of angry and incredulous people. The council keeps trying to push and push. It’s very frustrating and they hope the residents will just stop fighting.”

Hundreds of objections have already been filed against the application as people worry about the safety risks for school children.

The depot is on a route Surrey County Council has recently declared as a safe walking route for many children as justification for cancelling previously free bus services.

One objector wrote: “During school opening and closing times, traffic congestion is already severe, particularly at the junctions with Farm Road and Mill Road.

“Introducing additional industrial vehicles during these peak periods poses a serious safety risk to children and families in the local area.”

Another read: “It would mean more HGV and depot vehicle traffic during school-run times, which could increase congestion, noise, and air pollution on the roads where Cranmere Primary School are, and Lower Green.

“I and many others already have to deal with many of these vehicles going through our residential roads and school routes, an increased number will only increase the probability of accidents.

“This is a school area where the health and safety of the kids should be a priority. Those changes will affect pollution, noise and disruption of all families involved.”

A third example read: “The roads around Cranmere Primary school are already extremely busy during school drop off and pick up times.

“Adding extra vehicles of such a large size is not acceptable. The impact the current traffic has on the roads around the area is evident in the poor condition of the road surfaces.

“This should not go ahead, there’s a small window provided already to manage these times and it should be upheld.”

If approved the new hours for the depot would, the council says, be clearer and more consistent. Access would be allowed 6am and 8pm Monday to Saturdays; between 6am and 6pm Sundays.

The earlier start time and extended finishing times reflect how the depot operates. Restrictions on how they got to the site would be removed.

A spokesperson for Elmbridge Borough Council said: “We are applying to update some existing planning conditions for the Mill Road Depot to keep waste services running smoothly and efficiently.

“There will be no physical changes to the site, and all other conditions will stay the same.

“At the moment operations run from 6:30am to 6pm Monday to Saturday and 8am to 4pm on Sundays with some further restrictions for movements along certain roads during peak hours.

“However, maintaining the level of service expected by our residents often requires operations to continue beyond these hours.

“The planning application seeks to regularise and formalise these necessary extended operating times.

“The current restrictions make it very difficult to complete all scheduled rounds with the number of vehicles and staff agreed in the contract and does not reflect the actual operation of the site.

“If we don’t update these conditions, the new waste contractor will need to add more vehicles and staff to finish the same work in shorter hours.

“This would mean, more lorries on the road for residents and higher costs for the council and residents.

“This does not change any of the planning conditions for the other businesses that operate on the wider industrial estate and their vehicles.

“Updating the conditions now will help us avoid these issues and keep services efficient.

“It also allows flexibility for situations like heatwaves, when we need to start rounds earlier to protect staff wellbeing while ensuring collections are completed.

“The application is available on the council’s website for public consultation and will be considered by the Planning Committee early in 2026.”