Northern Ireland fuel protests: Go-slow tractor convoy brings traffic to virtual standstill between Hillsborough and Sprucefield, Lisburn
A convoy of around 20 tractors brought traffic on the A1 between Hillsborough and Lisburn to a virtual standstill today as part of a wider protest about rising fuel costs.
At 2pm at Sprucefield, Lisburn, half a dozen police cars or motorbikes were scattered around the roundabouts, but by 2:10pm – when the protest was supposed to begin – nothing had happened, with just one bemused tractor driver turning up.
Meanwhile, police had apparently stopped about 20 tractors on the overpass coming onto the A1 at Hillsborough.
When the News Letter arrived, it transpired they had not been stopped but were waiting either for more tractors or, possibly, for an agreed time to leave with a police escort.
The tractor drivers were very suspicious of the media. However they told the News Letter that their fuel costs had roughly doubled since the beginning of the US-Israel war with Iran and that while they had spoken to politicians about the matter, there was no help forthcoming.
It is understood that there was an agreement that the tractors would travel in a slow two-lane convoy from Hillsborough towards the Sprucefield Roundabout at Lisburn - but would not stop the traffic there.
In the event, the convoy - escorted by several police cars - took 45 mins to reach Sprucefield, travelling at around walking pace the entire way.
Needless to say, the tailback was extensive. Many HGV drivers on the opposite lane honked their horns in support while motorists and residents came out or stopped to take videos of the spectacle.
Once at Sprucefield the convoy simply drove around the roundabout and headed back south along the A1.