A row has erupted over plans to phase 20mph zones into a quiet village which residents say has barely had any road accidents.
It is understood the scheme in Longton, near Preston, would use a £40,000 slice of the £9.3m earmarked to Lancashire County Council to introduce the schemes across the county.
Residents and parish councillors attended a heated meeting on Tuesday where a county council representative revealed the scheme could see around 140 signs erected in the small village to notify people of the speed limits.
Joan Wignall, parish councillor, said: “ I can understand they may want to introduce it on rats runs in areas like Preston but we don’t have any rat runs, it is a waste of money.
“Longton doesn’t have any accident problems and that’s what 20mph zones are for. You are lucky to even get up to 20mph on the rest of the roads in the village.
“I am a cyclist but I think there are more important things to spend the money on.
“If it is a consultation they should be asking people if they want it. The council person more or less told us it was coming whether we liked it or not. How is that a consultation? Locals in Longton know the roads and police themselves, especially around school time, because they know what it’s like.”
A 63-year-old resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “ The problem with the £9.3m budget is that I doubt it takes into account that villages such as Longton, which was originally going to have 12 signs at the ins and outs of the village, will now have to have over 140 signs. I think the budget could be blown.
“Almost all of the residential roads are self regulating in that you would be committing an offence of driving without due care and attention if you could drive faster than 20 mph.”
A similar consultation for New Longton is due to start in the Autumn.
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