FRUSTRATED councillors are calling for Warndon Villages to be included in a clampdown on speeding and street racing.
Councillors Sarah Murray and John Rudge say the Worcester parish is being “left out and let down” when it comes to plans to deal with anti-social driving along the A4440.
They believe their community is just as plagued by disruption and danger, and don’t want it to take a tragedy for any action to be taken.
A meeting has been arranged to discuss road safety and speeding along the A4440 between Whittington and Powick, but Coun Murray and Coun Rudge have voiced frustration that the stretch through Warndon Villages has been left out.
Coun Murray said: “We’ve already brought a motion to city council on the urgent need for stronger roads policing, and I’ve met with the police and crime commissioner to press for more enforcement from West Mercia Police. Yet we’ve seen no real action taken to address the escalating issues in our area.”
Residents have reported street racers using Parsonage Way and other parts of the A4440 through Warndon Villages almost every night. The councillors warn that by focusing efforts solely on the southern stretch of the A4440, current plans ignore the fact that these dangerous behaviours are already a persistent issue in their area.
Coun Rudge continued: “This isn’t a case of the problem moving into Warndon Villages – it’s already here. By leaving our stretch out of the conversation, the county council is ignoring residents who deal with this every night. We need a joined-up approach that tackles the whole road, not just parts of it.
“The county council is responsible for highways, so why isn’t our county councillor taking the lead on this? Residents are being let down.”
Coun Murray added: “Residents are rightly asking: what is actually being done to tackle this? We shouldn’t have to wait for a tragedy before something changes.”
The councillors are calling for Warndon Villages to be included in all future A4440 safety discussions and for West Mercia Police to prioritise enforcement in the area before lives are put at risk.
A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said: “Speeding concerns in Warndon have been raised previously by the local county councillor. As a result, several surveys have been carried out along various roads and police enforcement has been increased in the area in the last few months.”
