TRAFFIC calming measures will, be introduced at accident blackspots along the length of the main road through Bingley, councillors have decided.

Members of Shipley Area Committee have agreed to use £80,000 from Bradford Council's district-wide Casualty Reduction and Safer Road Schemes to investigate a range of measures at designated danger zones.

Committee chairman, Councillor David Heseltine, said accident statistics backed the case for work to be done.

"Officers have examined the accident statistics over the last three years to find areas of concern and one of those is what I'd call the old main road that runs all the way from Crossflatts through Bingley and down to Beckfoot School," said Cllr Heseltine (Con, Bingley).

"This is all part of the casualty reduction schemes which are being considered across Bradford as a whole and Shipley Area Committee has now agreed spending that money and asked officers to go away and develop some ideas on what we should do."

The three areas of concern include a stretch of Keighley Road which runs from Millgate in the town centre and up past Bingley Grammar School to the edge of Crossflatts.

This section of road is notorious for congestion at school closing times as students make their way to buses, Bingley railway station or parents' cars.

And accident figures on that stretch during the last three years show two incidents, classed as 'killed or seriously injured' and six classed as 'slightly injured' and has a proposed £30,000 spend.

"Officers did suggest bringing in a 20mph speed limit all the way along, but councillors thought that might be rather unnecessary and so we've asked them to come back with some alternative proposals," Cllr Heseltine said.

Continuing out of town in the direction Keighley, the section of road from the Crossflatts Railway bridge up to the junction with The Crescent is proposed to have new traffic calming measures with a budget of £25,000.

In the last three years there were two accidents classed as 'killed or seriously injured' and four classed as 'slightly injured'.

The third section of the through route is at the other side of Bingley town centre as the B6265 makes its way south towards Bradford from the Main Street junction with Ferncliffe Road down to Wagon Lane.

There were four accidents classed as 'killed or seriously injured' and four classed as 'slightly injured' during the same three year time span.

Highway officers have suggested an unspecified speed limit reduction on this stretch, a vehicle activated illuminated sign and a possible traffic island, all with in an agreed budget of £25,000.

Cllr Heseltine said: "It's very early days yet, but we have the money to make the roads safer so we're asking for some further proposals."