A SPEED limit of 40mph is set to be extended down the A4104 Welland road outside Upton, taking in the site of a car crash in which a young couple were killed last December.

Worcestershire Highways Partner-ship is to begin a process of consultation with a view to introducing a new speed limit within the next six months.

The changes would see a 40mph limit currently in place from the top of Tunnel Hill extended half a mile down the road past Duckswitch Farm, where 22-year-old Cheryl Lewis and fianc Paul Kitsull, 31, died in an accident on December 29.

At the moment, the speed limit on the stretch is 60mph.

However, Highways Partnership manager Mike Davis said the proposed changes had not been decided upon as a result of the fatalities but had been triggered by complaints from residents whose driveways open onto the road.

John Lamb, of West Bank, who has been campaigning for a lower limit for years, said he is "absolutely delighted".

"I'm sure that everybody here will be very relieved that common sense has prevailed," he said. "We look forward to seeing it."

A letter from a resident living across the road from Duckswitch Farm was read out at a meeting of Upton-upon-Severn Town Council on Tuesday night (March 19) when the proposed changes were put before councillors.

The resident described the "terrific speed" of traffic approaching from both directions and expressed concern for her four small children.

Councillors approved the proposed changes. The Highways Partnership will now consult statutory bodies, including the police, before advertising the recommendations. They will then go before district and county councillors for final approval.