TARRINGTON Parish Council will raise it's council tax demand "sharply" this year in a bid to fund proposed speed restrictions by the village, on the main Ledbury to Hereford road.

In particular, councillors want to see a speed restriction of 40mph on the stretch of the A438 through the Garbrook estate, where many elderly residents live and must cross the busy road to use the bus stop for the Hereford service.

And the council is willing to self-fund safety improvements if necessary, to get them in place more quickly, and before another fatal accident happens.

There have been an number of fatal accidents along that stretch of road in the past.

The parish council is also compiling an online dossier any accidents that occur, to help strengthen its case for action.

Parish councillor, John Tallis said: "Following a series of requests from residents and a recent accident when a bin lorry ended up in a field on its side, Tarrington PC will be increasing their parish rate sharply and have put in place a system for reporting traffic accidents in the parish.

"The increase in the parish rate will provide a budget of £5000 to fund an application to extend the speed restrictions around the village on the A438, particularly in the Garbrook and Eastwood areas, from the Durlow turn through to Little Tarrington. This budget may have to be augmented from reserves or through local fund-raising, to complete the process."

Cllr Tallis added: "This stretch of road is currently subject to the national speed limit of 60 mph and although most motorists do not exceed this, Garbrook residents find it very scary crossing the road to use the bus stop."

Cllr Tallis said: "The section before this, from the Durlow turn to Garbrook, has seen many accidents over the years including a number of fatalities. It is likely that a 40mph limit will be requested, together with improved road markings and warning signs.

"Tarrington Parish Council have decided to fund this application, because Herefordshire Council have advised that the waiting list is three to four years, using their funding and standard procedures; but this can be shortened significantly if a parish is prepared to self-fund. The council does not want to wait for further fatalities in order to increase the priority for a change."

The link to the online dossier site is http://everyaccident.co.uk/postcode-hr8-2rp