Shropshire Star

20 or 30mph? Road sign anomaly leaves drivers scratching their heads in village

Motorists travelling through a Welsh village close to the Shropshire border have been left completely confused by whether there is a 20 or a 30mph speed limit.

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Left; The 20mph sign coming from Penley. Right; The 30mph sign coming from Ellesmere.

Drivers approaching Overton-on-Dee on the A539 from Penley, or the A528 from Wrexham, are now met with the new 20mph road signs.

But those travelling on the A528 from the Ellesmere direction meet a 30mph sign.

It means vehicles could be travelling on opposite sides of the road at completely different speeds.

The 20 miles per hour sign coming from Penley

The anomaly has led to raised eyebrows on local social media sites and also differing views on the new default speed limit in built-up areas.

The 30 miles per hour sign coming from Ellesmere

While many in Overton have said the new limit is nonsense, one grandmother said she hoped the new 20mph limit would make it easier for her to cross the main road with her grandchildren.

A spokesperson for Wrexham Council, which has been responsible for changing over road signs said the issue in Overton-on-Dee had been flagged up and was on its schedule of works.

"As the speed change came into force all at once, it has been challenging to ensure that everything has been changed over instantaneously," they said.

"We are confident that the majority of changes are complete, however there may be the odd anomaly - either that has been missed or been tampered with. We are continuing to dedicate resources to rectify these issues.

"We are encouraging anyone who spots any errors to report them to 20mphTrafficSigns@wrexham.gov.uk."

The spokesperson said there had been a number of defaced signs reported to the council and it would be resolving these once all the other work was completed.