SAFETY measures installed in a Huntingdon road are making life more dangerous for motorists, residents have claimed. They believe cars are being forced on to the wrong side of the road and into the path of on-coming vehicles. The traffic calming measures

SAFETY measures installed in a Huntingdon road are making life more dangerous for motorists, residents have claimed.

They believe cars are being forced on to the wrong side of the road and into the path of on-coming vehicles.

The traffic calming measures have been installed by Cambridgeshire County Council on Sapley Road. They narrow the road and force cars to slow down.

However, residents have told The Hunts Post that cars are now straddling the white lines and are approaching the Desborough Road junction partly on the wrong side of the road.

They claim this has caused several near misses between cars on Sapley Road and vehicles turning left out of Desborough Road.

And in an unrelated incident, one car has crashed into one of the signs warning motorists of the traffic calming measures.

The car mounted the kerb and knocked down the sign warning.

Heather and Ken Hever-Smith, whose home is opposite the junction with Desborough Road, said CCC were told the traffic calming was planned in the wrong place.

Mr Hever-Smith, a former deputy mayor of Huntingdon, told The Hunts Post: "If the traffic calming had been 150 yards further up the road, it would not cause any obstruction to homes and it would also be clear of any junction.

"The nonsense is that we said this at the time when the scheme was going for approval but what we said was disregarded."

Mrs Hever-Smith said the couple had been asleep when they heard the accident at 6am on Saturday.

"We heard a huge bang and when we went outside later, we found debris from a car and tracks on the verge," she said. "We presume the driver didn't see the traffic calming, swerved, mowed down the traffic calming sign, leaving bits of the car everywhere."

She added: "We said that there had been no accidents in Sapley Road, and that the average speed of cars, according to Cambridgeshire police's figures was 31 mph.

"We are in favour of safer roads, but by installing these islands Cambridgeshire County Council has made Sapley Road dangerous.

"The county is just finishing laying the last section of a pathway from Coneygear Road to Desborough Road. Therefore, both adults and children could be walking or cycling along this pathway just where the danger spot is."

A CCC spokesman said: "The scheme was put in because there was an issue with cars speeding down Sapley Road. This was decided to be the best spot because otherwise, we would either have had to close a lay-by or block the entries to people's property.

"The warning sign is reflective so it should have been seen but it was hit from behind. We are planning to put warning signs in Desborough Road that drivers need to look both ways before the exit the junction and to put white lines round the build-out.