WILTSHIRE Council has defended plans to increase the speed limit by a school once the school is moved from its current site.
The speed limit outside Forest and Sandridge School is currently 30mph but Wiltshire Council have announced it is to be increased to 40mph once the school moves to a new site.
This caused local councillor Terry Chivers to hit out at the plans. He said, “This is total madness; why on earth is Wiltshire Council looking to increase the speed limit on this dangerous area.
“Just because the school is being moved to a new site doesn’t mean that we have to put the lives of local residents at risk. This is a very dangerous road and the speed of traffic must be kept at a minimum and as local member I will be doing all in my power to do so.”
A spokesperson for Wiltshire Council responded, saying, “We follow government guidance regarding speed limits, and the limit along this section has been assessed as meeting the criteria for a 40mph restriction once the school has moved.
“The guidance is in place to keep limits consistent and appropriate to each area, and is designed to help local councils improve safety on their roads.”
The debate about speed on our roads came after Melksham News asked local schools about their thoughts on speeds around their schools. At the time Anna Wilcox, headteacher at Forest & Sandridge Primary School, said, “We have 30mph limits outside our school which we campaigned for for a long period of time. Previously the limit was 50mph.
“I have been headteacher here for eight years now, in that time there have been approximately five road traffic accidents outside the school during school time. Thankfully none have involved children and none have been too serious. These have all been caused by people not taking due care and attention on a main, busy road and due to people driving too fast.”
