Stuart Anderson MP vows to tackle speeding as safety concerns raised
Stuart Anderson MP has thrown his support behind local residents who have spoken out about speeding issues at key hotspots across South Shropshire. Almost 100 residents have signed a petition calling for the speed limit to be lowered on the A458 between Morfe and Six Ashes.
Residents want to see the nationally set speed limit replaced with a more locally set speed limit, which recognises how the neighbourhood has developed in recent years and now requires a lower speed limit for safety reasons to protect pedestrians.
Stuart said he has written to Shropshire Council calling for a review of the speed limit, given their responsibility for making decisions about the roads under their care including setting local speed limits. He has also said he has contacted the Police and Crime Commissioner to request any local interventions that could be taken to tackle dangerous roads and reduce speeding.
Stuart added he has also raised concerns about other hotspots after villagers in Knowbury contacted him with concerns about the volume of traffic passing through Caynham Road as a shortcut to the A49 from Cleehill. Stuart also said ongoing concerns about speeding on the B4363 had been brought to his attention and are being looked into.
Responding to the concerns, Stuart said more action must be taken to tackle these issues - with the latest statistics showing the majority of road fatalities occurred on rural roads. In 2022 there were 164 casualties on Shropshire’s roads, 5 of which were fatal and 52 were serious. Although rural roads carry 44% of road traffic, they account for 59% of road fatalities. So Stuart is now calling for more practical action to be taken to improve the situation. He added that interventions like speed monitoring could be very useful.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
“I want to do all that I can to ensure South Shropshire becomes a safer and better place to live, work, and grow up in. Any form of dangerous or inconsiderate driving behaviour is a serious road safety issue and should be treated as such. Indeed, all available research shows that there is a link between excessive speed and the risk of collisions. In recent weeks, many of my constituents have raised concerns about speeding with me at several hotspots across the constituency. I have relayed these concerns to the Police and Crime Commissioner and the Local Transport Authority. I hope swift action will be taken to urgently address these issues.”
The petition has gained almost 100 signatories and can be viewed at www.change.org/p/lower-the-speed-limit-from-national-speed-limit-to-40mph-on-a458-for-safer-streets.
