TRANSPORT chiefs have assured Redditch motorists they will consider the Government's latest suggestions to cut speeds on rural roads in a bid to reduce accidents.

Redditch Highways Partnership manager Jon Fraser said although they are already implementing their own policies to make country lanes safer, they would gladly look into any new schemes.

The Government recently said it may order local councils to reduce speeds on rural roads from 60mph to 40mph after it was revealed that 63 per cent of fatalities occured on these minor lanes.

But Mr Fraser said: "As a county with lots of rural areas, we are very aware of the need for safe driving conditions and a lot of the issues mentioned by the Government are already picked up by our procedures.

"We already monitor rural roads to see if there are any problems and if we can do anything to counter them, including lowering speed limits where necessary.

"We put the Village Speed Limits scheme in place in 1998, an example of how committed we are to stamping down on dangerous speeds in the countryside.

"The schemes have clear signs at the entrance to each village, letting motorists know they are entering a village with mostly 30mph speed limits or 40mph and in some cases 50mph blanket speed limits, with repeater limit signs throughout."

He added: "If there's anything else that comes out of the Department for Transport that can be used to make our roads safer, we're more than happy to look at that too."