A NORTH Dorset town could be getting a blanket 20mph speed limit.

Town councillors in Shaftesbury say they are about to canvas residents and businesses about their bid to make their town centre a go-slow area.

They say the move would complement the £478,000 town centre improvement scheme to make The Narrows safer for pedestrians as well as works around the town hall and Angel Square, with wider pavements, landscaping and traffic calming.

Town council member and mayor Cllr Derek Beer said: "As with many routes leading into a town, motorists have a tendency not to slow down enough.

"Another issue is that Shaftesbury is full of narrow lanes without pavements because of its age and design.

"At quieter times early in the morning and at night, motorists like to try and speed up using these roads. All we want to do is make Shaftesbury a safer place for shoppers and pedestrians.

"People need to be able to walk around the streets in confidence."

He says that a blanket 20mph limit would do away with current confusion about speed restrictions in the town.

"There's a view at county that traffic cannot go more than 20mph down Shaftesbury's narrow streets anyway," said Cllr Beer.

"But people here say it does need management because of the times when the roads aren't busy and motorists will put their foot down.

"So at our next planning meeting we shall instigate talking to the public to get their views and strengthen our case to the county, who make the final decision."

A spokesman at County Hall says that no comment can be made at this stage until the town council officially requests the speed restriction.