Move to reduce Bridgnorth speed limit to 20mph

The move follows concerns raised by residents over speeding traffic in certain parts of the town.

The matter was brought before Bridgnorth Town Council’s meeting and a "task and finish group" was set up to progress the matter further.

Bridgnorth’s mayor Councillor Ron Whittle said the problem in the town was not just speeding and called for caution over the issue.

He said: “Traffic enforcement is rubbish and people do drive dangerously – even at 20 miles per hour.

“There’s no point in my mind to take a simplistic approach to a complex problem. They need to identify all areas of risk. It needs a much wider approach than just concentrating on one small aspect.

"Certain areas, such as outside schools, could do with speed limit lights which light up at certain times of the day so drivers have to slow down at times when children and going in and out of school, but the limit should not be brought down 24 hours a day.

“If people ignore the speed limit at 30 they will ignore it at 20.”

It is thought that parts of Bridgnorth, with its busy narrow streets, particularly in High Town, and large numbers of pedestrians could be a suitable spot for a 20mph speed limit, which would be the responsibility of Shropshire Council to oversee.

West Mercia Police has previously launched a consultation on the extension of the 20mph zones across Shropshire and these have been embraced by towns like Shifnal, which has launched a ‘20’s Plenty’ campaign, and Highley.

Residents in Shifnal have indicated that they would welcome a move to bring the speed limit down throughout the town.

Mayor of Shifnal, Robert Harrop, has been a driving force behind the scheme.

Meanwhile, hopes for a 20mph speed limit outside Highley Primary School were dashed when it failed to gain the support of Shropshire Council officials in 2015.

They said the reduction remained a “low priority” because there had not been enough recorded incidents on the stretch of road to justify the cost.

Councillor Dave Tremellen, the village’s Shropshire councillor and a governor at the local school, was incredulous at the decision and claimed that pupils had been let down by the authority.

He said: “I was in total disbelief when it was refused.”

“It is dispiriting to find that their efforts will be subject to ‘prioritisation’.”