SOMEONE is going to get killed if more is not done to stop traffic speeding along a residential road, angry campaigners have claimed.

People living in Prospect Road, Woodford Green have been lobbying Redbridge Council for better traffic calming measures for the last five years, after the 20mph speed limit proved “ineffective” in slowing down angry drivers.

After a deputation at a council meeting in January, councillors agreed to install more 20mph signs along the road in an attempt to address residents’ concerns.

But just days after large 20mph signs were painted onto the road in March, the council’s highways department carried out a traffic survey showing an average of 62.8 per cent of cars still speeding.

Leader of the Prospect Road traffic campaign Giles Hodgson says he feels “incredibly frustrated” the council has still not acted on such “shocking figures”.

The 37-year-old said: “This is a complete dodge of responsibility by the council and the police.

“This shows that over a week, on average 4,886 out of 7,771 vehicles are speeding along our road. That is over 250,000 a year, which is just shocking.

“It also shows 13 cars going more than 50mph – how is that even possible in a 20mph zone? It’s just ridiculous.”

The campaign group claim that because both sides of the road are lined with parked cars and the pavements are so narrow, vulnerable residents are being forced to walk in the middle of the road.

Mr Hodgson added: “This is still a huge issue for people.

“Because of the way people park their cars and with such narrow pavements, elderly people and mothers with young children have to walk in the middle of the road – inches away from these cars going as fast as 50mph.

“The council’s approach seems to be not doing anything until a serious accident happens.

“It’s incredibly frustrating and quite frankly we all have better things to do with our time. They have this information, so why aren’t they doing anything about it?”

Brian Challis, who has lived in Prospect Road for 37 years, says the situation is a “serious accident waiting to happen”.

He said: “You don’t need a rubber strip survey to show the council how fast some of the cars go down Prospect Road.

“They only need to spend a couple of hours here to see how drivers deliberately ignore the 20mph signs.”

Mr Challis added that he believes installing speed bumps or cameras would be the only way to resolve chronic speeding issues.

He said: “Unless the council take action by installing a speed camera or bumps along the road, someone is going to get killed.

“There are elderly people and young children in Prospect Road who would not stand a chance if they stepped out into the road and one of these people came passed.

“We also know a blind person who has to walk in the road because of the uneven pavements – this is a serious accident waiting to happen.”

A Redbridge Council spokesman said: "Like all councils we prioritise this work in areas where there is a history of serious or even fatal injuries so we can use our limited budget to fund projects that have the most impact.

"In the three year period prior to the introduction of the 20mph zone there were six accidents involving personal injuries in the area and since the zone has been introduced this has dropped to zero.

"Against this background it is clear that there are other areas in the borough that must be prioritised for work in order to make our roads safer. 

"But in response to residents’ concerns, we have proposed that Prospect Road be used as a pilot for the police’s community road watch scheme where residents and the Police monitor speeds and issue warning notices."