A 50mph limit could be made permanent at an accident blackspot on the edge of a north-east town.
Roads chiefs at Aberdeenshire Council want to keep the once-temporary reduced speed limit in place on the A948 Ellon bypass.
Local politicians and campaigners have called for speed reductions on the stretch, between Castle Road and Yonderton, after a number of crashes and well-documented speeding.
50mph limit introduced in 2020 after years of crashes on the Ellon bypass
The local authority reduced the 60mph speed limit to 50mph on the Ellon to Auchnagatt road back in April 2020.
It came after a woman was seriously injured in May 2019 in a crash at the Knockothie Crescent junction.
Just two months later, north-east teacher and mum-of-two Yvonne Lumsden died after her family’s car collided with a trailer on the bypass.
Another seven crashes were recorded on the road between 2017 and 2021, four of which were caused by drivers either driving too quickly for the conditions or speeding over the limit.
The reduced limit was extended last October.
Ellon bypass 50mph limit ‘a lot better and safer’
Residents who live next to the busy road welcomed the move to make the temporary measure a permanent one, saying it had already helped to make the area “a lot better and safer”.
Mum-of-two Emma Alexander said: “If it was reduced even further – that would be great for us, but 50mph was a good compromise and it has been better – less road noise and safer.”
However, some residents believed the limit should be reduced even further to 40mph.
The council believes reducing vehicle speeds would prevent further collisions on the bypass.
And they will make the case to members of the authority’s Formartine area committee next week.
If backed, there will then be a consultation before the change can be made permanent.
Roads officials said in a report that the move would be “unlikely to make any difference to the majority of road users”.
“The reduction in speed allows drivers more time to react to a vehicle pulling out in front of them, so will reduce the risk of accident,” they added.
