A PARISH council has backed a plan to introduce a 20mph speed limit in its village, but hopes changes will be made to the scheme. At an extraordinary meeting of Melbourn parish council, held on Monday, councillors voted 11-1 in favour of the trial scheme,

A PARISH council has backed a plan to introduce a 20mph speed limit in its village, but hopes changes will be made to the scheme.

At an extraordinary meeting of Melbourn parish council, held on Monday, councillors voted 11-1 in favour of the trial scheme, which has been proposed by Cambridgeshire County Council and would apply to all roads in Melbourn.

The county council's area joint traffic management committee will make the final decision on whether the trial goes ahead at their meeting next Monday.

Cllr Mike Linette, spokesman for Melbourn Parish Council, said: "There was widespread support for the project, and we've had a lot of positive feedback from residents..

"However, we would like to see a few alterations made to the plans, particularly in terms of where the 20mph zone starts and stops."

The parish council has concerns that motorists entering the village will have to decelerate quickly when they enter the village from Cambridge Road or Royston Road.

"We would like to see the 30mph zone moved further out of the village, with the 20mph signs replacing the current 30mph signs," said Cllr Linette.

"At meetings we had with the highways people last year we did communicate this to them, but the plans have not been changed yet, though this is only a trial scheme anyway," he added.

Cllr Susan van de Ven, Melbourn's county councillor, said: "As the representative body for the village, Melbourn Parish Council has taken a strong lead in endorsing first steps toward a trial scheme, and I will be supporting their consensus at the Area Joint Traffic Management Committee's meeting on Monday.

"This includes some important suggestions for technical alterations to the layout of the scheme based on feedback from the public consultation," she added.

Melbourn was selected to be part of the 20mph trial in November after Girton chose not to partake in the scheme.

The trial has been proposed as part of a nationwide government initiative to improve road safety, following the success of similar zones introduced in Newcastle and Portsmouth.

If the county council give the go-ahead, the trial will begin this spring, and last for a year.