PRESSURE is mounting on a council to increase the number of 20mph zones across England’s largest county, following claims it has a haphazard approach towards protecting children.

As North Yorkshire County Council released figures showing the number of casualties in road collisions had fallen for the seventh year in succession, there were cross-party calls for further action to address safety concerns.

The calls follow Councillor Mike Jordan, who leads the authority’s transport, economy and environment overview and scrutiny committee, pressing the council to introduce lower limits off main roads in villages “to save children’s lives”.

The council’s leaders have raised doubts about whether such a scheme could be policed, but tensions between residents and the authority over the issue reappeared at a meeting of the council’s Thirsk and Malton constituency committee.

Road safety campaigners questioned why a 20mph speed limit and other pedestrian safety measures had been created outside one primary school, while no such measures were being implemented at other sites where children’s safety was a concern in the area.

A council spokesman said sites with high number of collisions were prioritised, but if the appropriate solution at a site was beyond the budget available it would be added to the authority’s reserve list.

The spokesman said: “Sites without a personal injury collision history are not a high priority and are unlikely to receive funding for improvements.”

A council spokesman said it was also promoting road safety in schools and colleges and was running several road safety schemes, such as the Drive Alive and Learn and Live programme.

However, Councillor Lindsay Burr told the meeting the authority’s approach towards children’s safety on roads was inconsistent.

She said: “The county should have a blanket approach across the county regarding the safety of children. Children wherever they are should be afforded the same reliability that people understand there is a school. If we didn’t say it was about finance, but about children’s safety, that is something we could all work towards.”