Oswestry’s town council will write to their counterparts at Shropshire Council as part of a move to extend 20mph zones in the town.

A motion by Green councillor Olly Rose which was approved at a meeting of full council last night (October 10) says extending existing 20mph zones in part of the town centre would end what she described as the current “inconsistent approach” to traffic management in the town.

As part of the proposal the town council will ask Shropshire Council to consider wide-ranging lower speed limits “where people are living or shopping”, and will also seek the support of North Shropshire MP Helen Morgan.

“I propose that the Town Council endorses for the third time it’s support for 20mph on a wide area basis and writes to Shropshire Council to encourage them to introduce this in Oswestry, where people are living or shopping,” said Cllr Rose.

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“Further, that the Council writes to the local MP seeking her support for this policy which has been shown to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries.

“To-date Shropshire Council have implemented some zones outside schools and in the town centre. This is leading to an inconsistent approach which if continued will require a great many costly road signs and vehicles constantly accelerating and decelerating between speed limits.

“Children need to be safe on their whole route to and from school not just outside of the school gate.”

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Parts of the town centre including Church Street, Cross Street and part of Willow Street became 20mph zones in late 2021 as part of changes to the town’s one way system aimed at making the town safer for pedestrians.

In Wales, 20mph zones have been made standard in most built up areas, with some councillors suggesting during the debate that people in Oswestry who regularly cross the border are more used to the lower limits.

The move comes as new Labour transport minister Louise Haigh suggested local speed limits should be “entirely up to local areas to decide” in marked contrast to the previous government who described 20mph zones as “anti-motorist”.

“It was completely wrong for the previous government to say that they would dictate that from Whitehall,” she said, speaking to national media in August.

“There’s no way me, sitting in my office in the DfT, can say: ‘This road in Chester should be a 20 mile per hour road or not.’ It’s completely ridiculous.”