BLADON residents campaigning for a mandatory 20mph speed limit on their busiest and narrowest street will hand a petition to the county council this month.

Sarah Watkinson , 70, launched the 20 is Plenty for Us campaign six months ago, with the aim of getting a mandatory 20mph limit on Park Street through the West Oxfordshire village.

She said buildings have been clipped by wing mirrors and pedestrians and cyclists often take their lives into their hands when they use the stretch of the street between the White House pub and the methodist church.

A 20mph limit would mean safer passage for everyone.

Mrs Watkinson, who has lived in Bladon for 40 years, explained: “We are talking about a street which houses the village pub, the tea shop, the school gates and the church hall which also hosts the junior church. Yet here we have the narrowest road and the narrowest pavements and no traffic weight restrictions.”

She added: “I have collected a petition with over 60 signatures and this will be presented at the full council meeting on July 10.”

The issue of 20mph limits in Oxfordshire has been rejected by county councillors in the past over concerns for local businesses and the extra drain on police resources needed to enforce them.

But Mrs Watkinson said: “With 20mph limits, drivers become more aware, and speeds reduce without the need for extra police.”

Newly-elected Lib Dem councillor for Woodstock and Bladon, Dr Elizabeth Poskitt, is supporting the Bladon 20 is Plenty for Us campaign.

She said: “Measures to enforce 20mph over this stretch of road are the least that should be done to create a safer, better, environment for those who live and those who visit Bladon.

“The petition to the county council raises awareness and draws attention to the level of local support for enforceable 20mph limits.”

There have been six accidents on the A4095 through Bladon in the past five years, none of which have been fatal.