THE call for a 30mph speed limit on a bridge used by hundreds of schoolchildren has been repeated.

Campaigners who want improved safety measures on the A48 bridge across the River Wye between Tutshill and Chepstow are unhappy with the response from the Welsh minister who is responsible for the road.

Two years ago students from Wyedean School joined Chepstow town councillors and Assembly Member Nick Ramsay (Con, Monmouth) to present a petition to the Welsh Government in Cardiff.

In a letter to the town council last month, Economy Minister Edwina Hart said her officials had provided a “thorough explanation” of the decision to retain the 50mph limit on the bridge.

That has been roundly rejected by the council which claims that in two years there has been “no explanation of any kind.”

In a reply to Ms Hart, town clerk Sandra Bushell said: “We have received no clear explanation as to why the simple action of starting the 50mph zone 320 metres further north on the A48, just after the end of the bridge, cannot be taken.”

The council is also concerned that the Welsh Government has agreed to erect railings along the bridge rather than crash barriers.

Ms Bushell said: “For vehicles and pedestrians the A48 bridge is a narrow trench between two concrete walls only 10 metres apart and 320 metres long from which there is no escape.

“Vehicles up to 2.5m wide approach each other at closing speeds of 100mph and pass within one metre of each other and within one metre of pedestrians.

“A momentary slip by any driver or a swerve to avoid a cyclist or a slipped load could result in a disastrous head-on collision and vehicles ricocheting off concrete side walls.

“It is not safe for traffic to travel at these speeds on the A48 bridge at Chepstow even without pedestrian being present.

“A new and open review is needed of traffic and pedestrian safety on this bridge.”