RESIDENTS and politicians are angry highways bosses have failed to make a decision on whether to give a Colchester road a 30mph limit.

Despite vociferous protests, earlier this month Colchester Council’s planning committee controversially gave the green light to a 12-pitch travellers’ site off Severalls Lane.

Following a visit to the site, committee members insisted the maximum speed alongside the site should be reduced from the national limit of 60mph to 30mph, to reflect the change to a residential area.

However, the highways authority Essex County Council has so far refused to heed the call, despite fears over the safety of pedestrians and cyclists.

Neighbouring farmer Stuart St Clair Pearce, who has campaigned against the site, said he often struggled to get out of his farm either on a bike or in a car because of the fast-moving traffic.

He said: “We opposed this site because we think it’s dangerous.

“I already have a problem getting out of my drive. The road is very busy.

“People have used it as a major cut-through for over 50 years.

“You would have thought with all this planning and all this money, are Essex County Council determined to make this something that’s going to go wrong?”

Colchester Council leader Anne Turrell has written to highways boss Norman Hume asking him to visit the site.

Ray Gamble, chairman of the planning committee, said: “The committee didn’t have any justification for refusing the application because the highways authority didn’t raise any objections.

“But there were various conditions relating to the access to the road to make it safer.

“We asked the officers to write to Essex County Council to ask if they could reduce the speed limit to 30mph. I’m sure I’m speaking for most of the committee, if not all. I’m quite appalled by the county’s response.

“I think anybody who saw the road will come to the same conclusion we did.”

An Essex County Council spokesman said it had received the request to change the speed limit of Severalls Lane.

She added: “Highways officers are looking into this and no decision has been made at this stage.”