Moves taken to halt speeding drivers

Buy photos » Coun Leigh Hunt with one of the new signs installed in the fight against Clifton’s growing speeding problem. 21.012.012.rug.jm

MEASURES to tackle the growing scourge of speeding drivers in Clifton village have been taken.

The small village north east of the town is being plagued by more and more speeding traffic, prompting councillors and people living there to take action.

To combat the problem, speed monitoring cameras, flashing warning signs and a one way system have been introduced on main routes in and out of Clifton by the parish council.

Drivers caught speeding by the cameras will be contacted by the police and given a formal warning.

The village regularly sees minor road accidents, and it was only on Sunday a 58-year-old woman was killed in a head-on smash on the A5 near the turning between Clifton and Lilbourne.

Borough councillor for the village, Leigh Hunt, told the Observer: "People just go so fast into and through the village. I live there and it is getting more and more dangerous.

"We're seeing increasing amounts of traffic coming through the village, which is being used as a rat run. People seem to be in such a rush to get around these days."

To add to the problem, people living in Clifton are concerned about the effects the Mast Site development of 6,200 homes and the huge expansion of DIRFT in Crick will have on village traffic.

Clifton is already used a rat run and villagers fear the two huge developments would create an 'impossible situation', according to Coun Hunt who said a new road to link the Mast Site in Hillmorton to the town centre while bypassing Clifton was essential.

"Clifton is tiny and it simply could not cope with this. This is why having a new link road is so important - if this doesn't get built it's only going to get worse," she said.

Villagers last year protested against the Mast Site development amid fears Clifton would be swamped by traffic when it is built next decade.

Vice chairman of Clifton Parish Council, Doug Hall, said the onus was on the developers to ensure the project does not overrun the village.

"We're optimistic something will be done, but whether what they do is enough to sort out our traffic problems is what we're concerned about," he said.

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