A WORRIED resident and the head of a leading private school have joined forces to call for reductions to the speed limit on the A449 in the wake of a crash that killed four teenagers.

Jason Bills, aged 37, of Bank Cottage, Hawford, near the Ombersley Road roundabout, is starting a petition to have speed limits reduced from 70mph to 50mph near his house.

And Jim Turner, headteacher of King's Hawford School, has lent his support to the idea, saying: "If he is actually doing that then he has my full backing and I will be the first person to put my name on it."

Their calls follow the crash, near the turning to Hadley, on Sunday, December 10, which claimed the lives of Joanne Bibby, aged 17, Kyle Gadsby, 18, Martyn Pickering, 18, and Stephanie Goodall, 16, whose funerals were held before Christmas.

Mr Bills' calls come a year after he made similar warnings about the dangerous road.

He said: "Even if we just start the ball rolling, it will get someone to do something. I have lived here for seven years and I have seen two people die and it's not nice. For that to happen at this time of year and to people of that age is horrific."

The lorry driver, who lives with his wife Sarah Hawkins and their children Dan, aged 10, and Grace, four, said it was hell trying to get off the A449 to his house.

"I've got cars coming up behind me at 70mph with my kids in the car, sounding their horns and flashing their lights, and all for the sake of some white lines and just slowing it down," he said.

"If the council can't do something for the families of the victims to try to put things right, they could try to put things right for other people." Mr Turner said the stretch of road near King's Hawford was particularly difficult for parents coming out of the site.

"It's not just at that point. Near where the accident was, there's a sign that says dangerous bends and road crossing, yet it's still a 70mph stretch," he said.

"The road is occasionally reduced to a single lane either side, there's no restriction where the road is next to Hawford. It's unrestricted just at a point where people are beginning to speed up, but at that point you've got a school with more than 300 children dispersing on to a road."

He added: "One of the youngsters who died was the grand-daughter of one of our members of staff. It's hit home here as far as we are concerned "If we do not do something, sooner or later we will have a mum with a car-full of children wiped out."

A Highways Agency spokeswoman said: "We made some adjustments to the road in April 2005 and since then this was the first serious and regrettably fatal accident that has occurred.

"We are awaiting the police report and will be meeting with the police and local authority once that report has been submitted to see if there is any need for adjustments to the speed limits or anything else."