Road safety work delay criticised by Oswestry councillors
The potential postponing of road safety improvements has been sharply criticised by Oswestry Town Council.
Town councillors say schemes should take place before, not after people, are injured or killed on the roads.
In a letter to Shropshire Council, Oswestry Town Council said it is not acceptable to wait for an accident to happen.
Town and parish councils across the county have been written to by Shropshire Council’s highways department warning that the schemes could be put on hold.
The authority has said community-led road safety schemes currently in the roads programme for the coming two years from town and parish councils will be put on hold until at least the review of budgets in 2020 if proposals to address a budget deficit are approved.
Shropshire Council’s highways and transport capital budget is to be reduced by £5 million in each of the next two financial years.
Money will still be available for work funded by the Department of Transport for accident clusters and high priority sites, the letter says.
At the latest Oswestry Town Council meeting, councillors agreed to write to Shropshire Council to ask if all of the existing list of planned work is being suspended.
Dangerous
The letter states: “It is not acceptable to wait for an accident to happen to enable a scheme to be put in the work programme.
“The priority should be the potential for the accident to happen, rather than wait for it to occur.”
Councillor Duncan Kerr said the town had put forward a long list of schemes that should be included in the budget for safety improvements.
"I understand Shropshire Council has budget problems but it is unfortunate that somebody has to suffer an accident before improvements can be made."
He said safety schemes had been suggested for areas including Morda Road, Edward Street, Welsh Walls and several in eastern Oswestry.
Just outside the town, a 30 mile an hour speed limit for Weston Lane, a shortcut between the bypass and the village of Morda, is also likely to be postponed.
Thelma Parker who lives in Weston Lane said: “It is a nonsense that this small, winding lane has a 60 mile an hour speed limit.
"We were told last year we would get the new speed limit, now it is getting postponed. It is dangerous.”
Shropshire Council was unavailable for comment.
