Calderdale has now become the first authority in West Yorkshire to make 20mph the default speed limit in all residential areas.

The decision was made by Calderdale Council’s cabinet in an effort to improve road safety. It follows statistics which showed that the proportion of children killed or seriously injured in road traffic accidents in Calderdale was almost twice the national average.

Labour’s cabinet member for health inequalities, Councillor Simon Young said: “People demanded action, we consulted, we listened and we’ve taken real action to address both the problems and perception of speeding traffic.

“The speed of a vehicle is the single main factor that contributes to road fatalities and a recent study found that 45 per cent of pedestrians are killed when struck by vehicles travelling at less than 30mph, dropping massively to five per cent at speeds below 20mph. The facts really speak for themselves.”