Speed limit to be reviewed after three crashes in two days

Road chiefs are to review the speed restrictions on an accident blackspot after three crashes took place in just two days.

Campaigners say that the 60 miles per hour limit on Ackworth Road, which runs between Pontefract and Ackworth, is too high.

A motorcyclist suffered serious injuries after a collision on the road on August 12, before two male drivers were unhurt after an accident around the same place the following day.

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Further south, where the stretch of road becomes Castle Syke Hill, another incident took place that weekend, just weeks after a crash involving a taxi claimed the lives of a married couple.

Some locals believe the speed limit is to blame, and continues to put lives at risk.

Speaking on Friday, Pontefract South councillor David Jones said: “I have requested that Highways (at Wakefield Council) review the speed limit on Ackworth Road, so that there’s a consistent speed limit, given the nature of the bends on the road from Pontefract through to Ackworth.

“It needs to be reduced to a more appropriate level.

“There’s more and more cars on the road, people are trying to get from A to B quicker and more chances are being taken.

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“We’ve got to learn from the experiences of the last week. Serious action needs to be taken.”

Roberta Drewitt, who lives in Ackworth, was one of the first on the scene when Paul and Susan Gossedge died in June.

She said: “There’ve been three accidents this week, but how many more have happened in the past that we don’t hear about.

“I won’t even let my kids walk to school along the road because it’s not even a proper footpath. You’ve got elderly people waiting for a bus on half a metre of pavement.

“It’s sad. Something really needs to be done.”

David Spereall , Local Democracy Reporting Service