A draft order advertised on 10 September would ban cars from the new Transport Hub access road off the A465. Objections close at noon on Friday 2 October.

Herefordshire Council wants to shut general traffic out of the access road serving Hereford’s new Transport Hub. It advertised the draft order on 10 September 2026, and objections close at 12 noon on Friday 2 October 2026.

The order is a variation of the council’s 2022 consolidation order for traffic movements. It would add two restrictions:

  • Prohibition of entry on the private road known as the Hereford Transport Hub DIRO, from its junction with the A465, for a distance of 30 metres.
  • Prohibition of entry except buses on the Station Approach Access Road (USRN 23231260), from the entrance to the Transport Hub DIRO, for a distance of 30 metres.

Both are 30-metre lengths at the entrances, not a change to Station Approach as a whole. The effect, if the order is made, is that the hub’s own internal road becomes a bus route in law and cars cannot turn into it.

Why the council says it is doing it

The Statement of Reasons bundled with the notice is short and gives four grounds. The first is the practical one:

  • to prevent “inappropriate access that will negatively impact the safe movement of buses using the new Transport Hub DIRO”
  • to avoid danger to people or traffic, or the likelihood of danger arising
  • to facilitate the passage of traffic on the road or any other road
  • to preserve and improve the amenity of the area the road runs through

The draft order itself is unsigned and undated on its commencement clause, which reads “This Order shall come into effect on the day of 2026”. No start date has been set, and the new sealed plan for the 2022 order is listed as “TBC”. That is normal at the proposal stage: the council cannot fix the date until objections have been considered.

The equality assessment records no impact on any group

The Equality Impact and Needs Assessment attached to the notice was signed by scheme officer Joseph Grice on 2 September 2026. For every one of the nine protected characteristics, including disability, it records: “No negative or positive impact on this group has been identified at this time.”

It is an initial assessment, and it says so: “any issues highlighted through the consultation process will be considered and reported at the end of the consultation period.” Anyone who thinks a bus-only access road affects how they reach the station, particularly disabled drivers and the taxi and accessible parking arrangements the hub is designed around, has until 2 October to put that on the record. There is no second stage after that.

What already changed at the station, and what has not

Car access to Hereford station has been restricted since the spring, but by signs and management rather than by law.

From 9 May 2026 private vehicles have had to use the station car park to pick up or drop off, because the construction work moved onto the station frontage and the frontage was reserved for buses and taxis. The council’s own page says the car park allows 20 minutes free, is managed by APCOA Parking, and that APCOA enforces the 20-minute rule. Dedicated pick-up and drop-off spaces were promised “in the coming weeks” and signposting once available.

That arrangement is described by the council as temporary and tied to construction. This draft order is different: it is a permanent traffic regulation order, and it applies at the hub access road rather than the station frontage.

The hub itself is part of the Improving Transport in Hereford programme. The council puts the funding at £19,990,000 of Levelling Up money, plus £3.5 million from the council and £1 million of Active Travel funds. Its plans include an enclosed waiting room, separate bus stops, covered cycle storage, real-time information boards, and a restructured short-stay, accessible parking and taxi area. When the council reported on the programme in May it described the hub as around 65 per cent complete with a completion date of October 2026, the figures we used in our guide to Hereford trains to London.

What the draft Hereford Transport Hub order would do Two proposed restrictions. On the private road known as the Hereford Transport Hub DIRO, no entry for any vehicle, from its junction with the A465 for 30 metres. On the Station Approach Access Road, USRN 23231260, no entry except buses, from the entrance to the Transport Hub DIRO for 30 metres. Objections close at 12 noon on Friday 2 October 2026. Two 30-metre restrictions, both at an entrance Variation Order No.6 2026, Transport Hub, Hereford, as advertised on 10 September 2026 NO ENTRY Private Road (Transport Hub DIRO) From its junction with the A465, for 30 metres. No vehicles may turn in. NO ENTRY EXCEPT BUSES Station Approach Access Road USRN 23231260. From the entrance to the Transport Hub DIRO, for 30 metres. Buses only. Objections close 12 noon, Friday 2 October 2026 · trafficengineering@herefordshire.gov.uk Source: Herefordshire Council notice and draft Variation Order No.6 2026, published 10 September 2026. Graphic by Hereford Today
The order covers two short lengths at the hub entrances. Representations of support are accepted as well as objections.

What it means for you

  • Nothing changes on the road yet. This is a proposal. No commencement date is set in the draft order.
  • The deadline is 12 noon on Friday 2 October 2026. Objections must be in writing, with the grounds on which they are made.
  • Email trafficengineering@herefordshire.gov.uk, or write to the Road Safety and Traffic Engineering Team, Economy and Environment, Herefordshire Council, Plough Lane, Hereford HR4 0LE.
  • Support counts too. The notice states plainly that representations of support will also be received during the same period.
  • General enquiries go to the Road Safety and Traffic Engineering Team on 01432 260000. The documents can also be inspected in office hours at the Hereford Customer Service Centre, Blue School House, Blue School Street, Hereford HR1 2LX.
  • Representations may be shared. The council says data may be imparted to third parties and kept for up to seven years.
  • Dropping someone at the train? Use the station car park, 20 minutes free, enforced by APCOA. That has been the arrangement since 9 May.

This is the second live consultation on Hereford traffic this month. Six more streets face waiting and loading restrictions under a separate order, which we covered in yellow lines on six more Hereford streets. Our roadworks and travel page tracks what is actually shut this week, and parking in Hereford has the city car park tariffs.

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