A CAMPAIGN group is asking Wiltshire Council to reconsider setting a 40mph speed limit through the new Castle Mead estate in Trowbridge to help keep residents and pupils at nearby schools safe.

Campaign for A Better Trowbridge believe that the road through the estate, which is known as Leap Gate and will eventually connect Hilperton Drive with West Ashton Road, should have a 30mph limit.

According to the group, Wiltshire Council is ignoring government guidance from the Department of Transport that makes it clear that national speed limits should be 30mph on street-lit roads through residential areas.

There is also a call for the introduction of traffic calming measures along the road, which runs past both The Mead Community Primary School and Castle Mead Primary School.

Ken McCall, of Campaign for A Better Trowbridge, said: “Leap Gate is currently being used by children, mothers and buggies, people walking to the school, people using buses and people on bicycles.

“This is because it is a kind of ‘high street’ through the estate. However, not only is the speed worryingly set to 40mph, we understand that no pedestrian crossings or traffic calming is planned.

“We believe the road should have a 30mph limit and many of the residents we have spoken to are also singing from the same hymn sheet, especially those with children as it is a busy residential area.

“This road is close to both The Mead and Castle Mead primary schools and the idea of cars and lorries going down it at 40mph is worrying. Even if the limit is 40mph, some drivers may go nearer 50mph as it is a straight road.”

Mr McCall believes the council should reduce the limit on the road and introduce new traffic calming measures before the proposed Ashton Park estate goes ahead, as the development could result in more motorists using the road as a ‘rat run’.

The group is now planning to raise awareness about their campaign to lower the speed limit by warning more residents about the implications of the 40mph limit.

“Apart from cutting the estate in half, there are implications for safety, walking to school and the sheer unpleasantness of HGVs past your front door,” added Mr McCall.

“Planners in the 1980s severed Trowbridge into two when County Way was built. The risk is that 40 years later the new suburbs of our town will also be severed by a road that is just too fast. A 30 mph limit would be much fairer on people living or moving into the area.”