CALLS to reduce the speed on the A596 have been backed — if it can help save lives.

Consultation on the plans is now live and comes after a number of serious crashes in the past few months, with one resulting in a young man losing his life.

The first was a woman who was left in critical condition after a horror crash.

At about 8.40am on Tuesday, February 23, a call was made after a Vauxhall Corsa and a Volvo HGV were involved in a two-vehicle collision. The woman was airlifted to hospital.

Almost a month to the day later, another serious crash happened

The crash, on March 21, involved a car and an HGV.

Ben Law, from Wigton, died at the Royal Victoria Infirmary on April 3.

At the time, a police spokesman said: “The family of Ben are devastated at their loss and politely request privacy at this time. They are being supported by specialist officers.”

Following a review of speed limits within Allerdale, Cumbria County Council is launching a consultation from yesterday until Friday, May 21, to gather feedback and views on proposals to change speed limits in three separate locations in Allerdale.

The changes which are being proposed to the A596 at Micklethwaite are to introduce a 40mph speed limit. This proposal comes as a result of an independent Engineering Safety Study carried out along the road.

The study indicated that a reduction in speed limit would help to prevent accidents and collisions from occurring as often.

Agreeing it could help save lives, the leader of Wigton Town Council, Elaine Lynch, said: “I think, considering how many accidents there have been lately, if a study is showing that a reduction in speed would help to prevent accidents, then this would be a good idea and a good traffic-calming measure."

Councillor Keith Little, Cabinet Member for Highways, said: “Road safety is one of the top priorities for the county council and I’m pleased that we are holding a consultation to understand the views of local people.

“Reviewing speed limits and analysing traffic data is an important aspect of the work of our highways teams, and the ultimate goal is to enhance road safety and reduce accidents on our roads.

“I’d urge everyone to respond to the survey, so that we have as much information as possible when making final decisions on proposals to change speed limits.”

The survey is available on the council website.