FEARS of a serious accident have spurred residents to make their neighbourhood safer.

Volunteers living near a busy road in Middlewich have teamed up to form Warmingham Lane Community Speed Watch.

On one day during the early evening rush hour last week, 51 vehicles were caught breaking the 30mph limit. The highest speed recorded was 50mph.

Men and women of all ages take it in turns to stand on the side of the road every day and monitor traffic with a professional speed gun.

"Everyone I speak to is surprised there hasn't been a major accident," said dad-of-three Paul Moore, who set up the group. "I have personally seen a couple of very near misses.

"One guy was overtaking on the wrong side of a road doing 54mph. We were stood there in high visibility jackets. You do get a lot of small kids riding bikes on the pavement. We're trying to make the neighbourhood safer for kids."

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Speeding has been a problem on this stretch of a road for a long time, say residents.

"There is a long straight national speed limit 60mph road and then it comes into a built up area," said Paul. "We are towards the end and drivers don't slow down. The majority of people going too fast are not people who live in this vicinity. They are passing through."

Residents just want to warn drivers of the dangers.

Northwich Guardian:

Residents caught 51 vehicles breaking the 30mph speed limit in Warmingham Lane during an hour's surveillance

"It is primarily a deterrent, we are not trying to criminalise people," said Paul. "We are local people. We have all lived on this road for years. We do get out every day and try and vary the times. The gun we use is a very accurate measurement of speed and has a range of 200 feet so we can follow someone a long way down the road and track their speed."

Hundreds of motorists have been caught driving too fast since the group was set up a few months ago.

Volunteers have been trained by Middlewich Police and record the speeds and registration numbers manually of any drivers exceeding the 30mph limit.

"We log all the information and feed it to the police," said Paul. "They will follow it up with a warning. Further action can be taken if drivers persist. Police officers can visit them and fine them."

The eight founding members of the Speed Watch group chipped in to buy the speed gun and all volunteers provide their own high vis jacket.

"We are very visible," said Paul. "It is noticeable that when were are there the average speed comes down by between five and 10 miles an hour. "We have received a fantastic response from people who live here. We are getting more volunteers all the time. Residents say they are very happy to see us out there.

"We are doing it for the betterment of the local community.

"Our ultimate aim is to get Cheshire East Council to implement some sort of traffic calming, be it humps, chiccanes or a speed camera."

Anyone interested in joining the group can contact Warmingham Lane Community Speed Watch on Facebook.