A £45,000 project to tackle an accident blackspot in Silsden town centre has been approved by councillors.

Keighley Area Committee agreed to fund improvements at the Kirkgate and Bell Square junction, as part of a £90,000 road safety package for Keighley district.

Highways engineers will draw up detailed plans to improve the junction, which could include traffic signals and a pedestrian crossing.

There will also be small-scale improvements on roads in Keighley, Oakworth, Parkwood and Cross Roads, with cash from Bradford Council.

The Silsden project was this week welcomed by ward councillor Adrian Naylor, who had pushed for action following a long history of accidents.

He said: “I’m really pleased we’ve finally got some funding allocated to deal with the problems with Bell Square.

“The issue of accidents in that area goes back a long time, and solutions have repeatedly been asked for during the past decade.”

Cllr Naylor said there were problems all along Bell Square, from Bridge Street to the junction with the main A6034 (Kirkgate/Bolton Road).

But he added: “I think the main problem is the junction with Bolton Road, people turning left at the Kings Arms, or turning across the traffic.

“The junction is becoming more busy. It’s a route school buses take and, at the busiest times of day, we have children going to and from the two Silsden schools.”

Cllr Naylor said past incidents included pedestrians injured, a two-vehicle shunt and, most recently, an accident that saw the Yorkshire Air Ambulance take a man to hospital.

He added he will rely on council engineers to draw up a suitable scheme to solve the problems, but he hopes the work will include a crossing on the main road, to allow elderly residents in nearby sheltered housing to reach Silsden Park.

As part of this year’s casualty reduction programme, Keighley Area Committee also approved £15,000 for a road safety package on the A6033 Hebden Road/Haworth Road in Cross Roads, signing and lining improvements, two vehicle-activated electronic speed signs and a possible speed limit reduction.

The committee also approved £10,000 for vehicle-activated speed signs and signing and lining improvements in Oakworth Road and Keighley Road between Keighley and Oakworth, and £10,000 for traffic measures and improvements in the Dalton Lane and Parkwood Street area of Keighley.

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