Reform members to avoid Durham parish meetings after road safety row

New safety measures have been approved in Pelton, County Durham, amid speeding concerns from residents. 

Improved signage, new 20mph school zones and gateway improvements will be introduced but previous plans for speed bumps have been shelved after the current councillors said they were not wanted. 

However, the area’s Reform representatives have been accused of failing to take action on local road safety. 

Danny Wood, a former Labour county councillor and Chair of Pelton Parish Council, said: “I am disgusted that after publicly pledging not to block road safety measures, we are now losing funding allocated to our area while Reform fail to take action to make our roads safer.”

Mr Wood said funding previously secured for wide-scale traffic calming measures across the area from previous Labour county councillors’ neighbourhood budgets and three local parish councils was set aside for the safety measures, including speed bumps.

He added: “Given the lack of consultation, the local Labour Party developed a leaflet to tell residents about this decision – and the Reform councillors have published a letter calling me a liar and claiming that they will not engage with the three parish councils unless I apologise.”

Yet the Reform politicians have hit back at Labour parish councillors, accusing them of distributing leaflets that “twist the truth”. 

In a joint statement, county councillors Brian Quirey, Steve Biggs and Ian Cross, responded: “Labour claims Reform ‘blocked’ road safety. This is a deliberate twist of the truth.

“The reality is we approved the 20mph school zones, gateway improvements, and better signage because those actually protect our children.

“What we rejected were the speed bumps. Residents told us clearly on the doorstep: no more humps. Surveys show humps damage cars, delay emergency vehicles and increase noise and pollution with high maintenance costs. We delivered exactly what we promised: sensible safety measures without the nuisance.”

County Councillors on Durham County Council are invited to parish and town council meetings around the region to update local members and residents with their recent business in the ward. However, Reform’s three Pelton representatives have distanced themselves from attending any future meetings. 

The statement added: “Following the distribution of this deceitful leaflet, it appears county councillors can add little value by attending parish meetings that circulate such dishonesty.

“Until we receive a written withdrawal of these untruths and an apology, we will not attend further parish council meetings. We will support our residents directly and encourage them to contact us with any issues outside of parish control.”