Plans for 20mph speed limit in Oswestry put on hold

The move was supported by Oswestry Town Council in April after a motion was tabled by then town councillor Saffron Rainey.

His motion was backed by a petition by Oswestry woman Sarah-Charlotte Peace which she set up after she was seriously injured in a road traffic collision and which now has more than 1,000 signatures.

The town council had been asked to formally submit the plans to Shropshire Council, but members have now asked for further discussions through the setting up of a new group which will look at the wider issues of transport.

The new group will take a more "holistic" view of highways issues, officials have said.

Councillor Martin Bennett said by referring the proposal to the new transport group, wider opinions from a variety of interested parties and stakeholders would be available.

He questioned the level of support a 20mph limit would have in Oswestry from the public, particularly on its busier routes on the outskirts of the town.

Speaking at a meeting on Wednesday, he said: "As you come off the roundabout at Mile End you would be hitting 20mph.

"I don't think to be honest if you went to residents of Oswestry and asked for a blanket 20mph limit that there would be much support.

"There was a traffic study done earlier this year. The average speed of traffic in the town centre was 21mph."

Councillor Bennett added that the petition was calling for a blanket 20mph limit on all Oswestry roads while the original motion only asked for the speed cut in the town centre.

He said the whole issue could be "thrashed out" by passing it on to the new transport group.

However, Councillor Duncan Kerr said the proposal should be passed on to Shropshire Council road safety policy/speed policy system as requested so the matter could be progressed quickly.

In a vote eight councillors supported the move to pass the issue on to the new transport group, with four councillors abstaining.