Speed limit victory

NORTH Cotswold villagers who have fought for years to have the speed limit of the road outside their homes reduced look as if they have finally won their battle.

The residents of the Newtown area of Little Compton, along the main A44 road, have been told that the road is in line to have the current 60mph speed limit cut to 50mph.

The proposed cut has been included in a Warwickshire County Council review of A and B roads, which is currently out for public consultation.

Little Compton parish councillor and Newtown resident Louise Moorman said: "After battling for many years the residents are delighted."

The new limit, if approved, will stretch from the county boundary near the Cross Hands pub to Kitebrook. The county council has allocated £42,000 for the work.

"There have been a lot of accidents on this stretch of road and at least two fatal accidents on the bit of road past the Oilwell Garage," said Cllr Moorman.

She praised the efforts of Warwickshire County Councillor Christ Saint, who had attended a number of meetings with residents and supported their campaign.

"Chris Saint has backed us all the way," she said.

"We've been asking for this for a long time, at least the 12 years we've lived here. I know it's not enough and we would really like a 30mph limit but we know that's not going to happen so 50mph is a good start," she added.

Cllr Saint, whose Shipston division includes Little Compton, said he was pleased to see the 50mph limit being proposed for the A44.

"There is an anomaly there that will be corrected and the people who live at Newtown will be pleased," said Cllr Saint.

Cllr Saint is also backing Stretton-on-Fosse parish councillors, who have said they are happy with the current limit on the B4035 road from the Norgren site in Shipston to Charingworth, which it is proposed to cut to 50mph but want a cut in the limit of the A429 Fosseway at the junction into their village.

The proposals do not include an extension of the 30mph limit on the Campden Road in Shipston, which the town council has pressed for in the past, though they do include a 50mph limit on the Brailes Road out of Shipston.

Jo Edwards, the county council's Senior Road Safety Engineer, said: "We invite any feedback from our communities, which will of course be taken into account by the county councillors when choosing which schemes should be prioritised."

Further information is available on www.warwickshire.gov.uk/speedlimitreview The deadline for feedback is February 11.

Source - Cotswold Journal

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