Herefordshire Council Green Councillors, Felicity Norman and Jenny Bartlett have expressed concern at Government plans to increase the speed limit for lorries on rural roads from 40mph to 50mph.

The Government believes that this will save hauliers and their customers millions of pounds, reduce congestion and the dangers of risky overtaking.

Cllr Norman says “This is ignoring the fact that many of our country roads are narrow, with poor surfaces, often with frequent blind bends and dips, and limited visibility, especially this year with reduced grass cutting.

"Lorries are heavy and slower to stop, and this is adding to the dangers for other road users, including cyclists, horses and pedestrians."

She added: “Unfortunately this will not stop the risk takers who want to get past at any cost. We should be encouraging cars and lorries to slow down, not speed up on these rural roads. There are already far too many accidents, some of them fatal, and this can only increase the dangers.”