by Hayley Robinson

Road sensors have been put in to monitor traffic along a notorious stretch of road - two days after a protest march was held.

Angry residents living in Chestnut Street, Borden, say the road has become plagued by speeding motorists trying to avoid the lights at the Stockbury roundabout.

A request to lower the speed limit along the street was originally rejected by Kent County Council (KCC) because there was “no clear evidence” it is needed.

Villagers responded by stepping up their campaign and marching along the road from the Tudor Rose pub end on Saturday morning.

Around 25 horse riders, mums pushing prams, dog walkers and residents took part in the walk which was led by a hearse - provided courtesy of Robert McCann, of Time Capsules UK Ltd - and four local people carrying a handmade coffin with the words ‘Unknown Person R.I.P’ written on it.

To protect the protesters from oncoming traffic, two cars - one at the front and one at the back- were driven with their hazard lights flashing.

Eight days earlier more than 200 letters urging KCC to take action before there is a death along the road were presented to Cllr Bryan Sweetland, cabinet member for environment, highways and waste.

It seems their pleas didn’t fall on deaf ears as by MondayJune 18 KCC had installed sensors along the road to collect data about the volume and speed the traffic travels along there.

They will remain in place for several weeks. The data will then be analysed to see what, if any, traffic calming measures need to be implemented.

KCC officers also visited the area on Tuesday June 19 to assess the need to refresh the road markings, the majority of which have worn away.

Protestor Alan Belsom, who lives in Chestnut Wood Lane, off Chestnut Street, said: “The march was a resounding success.

We had more people than we expected turn up to send a clear message to KCC that people power works.

“It certainly made the traffic slow down.

“Now we‘ve just got to wait and see what the sensors pick up and what KCC decides to do.”