PLANS to reduce the speed limit at Sourton and Lake have been put on hold because of police concerns.

Officers fear other road users such as pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders will be lulled into a false sense of security if the speed limit is reduced from 40mph to 30mph.

In a letter to the West Devon partnership committee, which has supported the move, road safety officer MPC Nigel Bishop said a reduction in the speed limit would not necessarily result in vehicles travelling slower.

People, including parents with children, would cross the A386 at Sourton with the assumption that it was a safe environment, he said.

But Cllr John Hockridge said local people had been battling since 1974 to get a reduction in the speed on the road.

He said it was duel carriageway or motorway all the way from Scotland to Sourton Cross and it took people a while to adjust to a minor road.

'I understand what the police are saying but what we, in the parish, would wish for is better monitoring of the road so the police can see the speed of the traffic going through here.'

Chief Inspector Chris Amos told the meeting a speed camera would only serve to slow people down where it was situated but vehicles would speed up again as soon as they had passed it.

Local service officer from Devon County Council, Mike Parnell, told the meeting he would go back to the drawing board and attempt to come up with a better traffic calming solution.