Heath and Reach 'held to ransom' by Central Beds Council over plans to install speed cameras

Heath and Reach is being “held to ransom” by Central Beds Council as it “refuses" to discuss the installation of speed cameras in the village – with one frustrated parish councillor even installing a fake device to deter motorists.

The parish council is calling on residents to email the Head of Highways, Arthur Macklin, to ask how he intends to resolve traffic issues in the village, after two meetings with Central Beds Council (CBC) were "cancelled with less than 12 hours’ notice". It says a request for a third has "gone unanswered".

But CBC says it has previously provided advice and that it would "welcome a discussion" about traffic calming measures.

Parish Councillor, Martin Boyden, who has installed the bogus camera at his Leighton Road home, told the LBO: "We have got a massive problem with speeding in Heath and Reach. There was a survey done in 2019 by Bedfordshire Police showing large scale problems - one driver was doing 80mph around 10.30am!

"The parish council has been saving furiously for ten years, and has over £100,000. We've had a couple of companies quote for speed cameras – an average speed camera system – and have have the design drawn up. We can also afford to maintain them each year. Bedfordshire Police are on board, but CBC is refusing to speak to us."

The parish council claims that CBC "will not support" the installation of speed cameras, favouring a traffic calming scheme – but that it will not discuss the scheme until the parish council "agrees in writing" that it will not implement safety cameras.

Councillor Boyden claimed: "We feel like they are holding us to ransom, and won't talk to us unless we sign away our speed camera plans."

He said speeding is so bad in the village that parents are "frightened to walk children to school", while parked vehicles have also been damaged. Meanwhile, pedestrians are sometimes forced to "leap back" from zebra crossings. The church wall was also damaged during a crash in November, and again in the new year.

In a traffic survey run by the parish council, one resident claimed: "Woburn Road is a death trap and it will only be a matter of time before there is a tragic accident. Unless you are a resident no one adheres to the 30mph speed limit. Most people are speeding in excess of 45mph to 50mph."

A CBC spokesman said: "We understand the parish council’s concerns about road safety in Heath and Reach. We have advised the parish council that a self-policing suite of traffic-calming measures would be more appropriate than installing average speed cameras and we would welcome a discussion about this.

“Unfortunately, the average-speed camera plans the parish council have proposed are not practical. We have highlighted several issues to them with their plans including the on-going costs of running the cameras, which would fall to us, and the number of cameras proposed not being sufficient for the road layout.

“We continue to invest in improving road safety across Central Bedfordshire, investigating and carrying out a range of appropriate schemes and initiatives designed to address known issues and to encourage motorists to drive safely, appropriately and within the law at all times.”

But Councillor Boyden said: "People who live near speed humps hear the constant breaking and accelerating – drivers just speed up again."