Man, 88, who's 'seen it all' outside his home took direct action against the council - and he's 'prepared to be arrested'

An elderly pensioner says he's prepared to be arrested over his battle with the council after stopping workers installing national speed limit signs near his home. Terrence Cook insists he has had concerns about the 'dangerous' country lane for years.

So when highways workers arrived to install new signs informing drivers they could travel at 60mph, the 88-year-old took direct action. Terrence rushed out of his South Wales cottage and reversed his car from the drive to block the worker from entering the lane with the sign last week.

Now, he's in dispute with his local council, Wales Online reports. Terrence fears the signs would encourage speeding motorists to test the limits of their driving skills along Horeb Lane in Trinant, Caerphilly borough.

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It's a typical country lane, wide enough for one car with tight bends where visibility is poor. Terrence explained how it would be very easy for two vehicles to collide, or for a vehicle to collide with a person if a motorist is driving too quickly.

A Caerphilly council spokesman said Horeb Lane has always been a national speed limit route despite signs indicating it was 20mph. It has emerged that someone has twisted the 20mph signs at Horeb Lane to make it appear as though the speed limit on the country lane was 20mph when those signs are actually for the road heading in the opposite direction.

A council worker has since been to the site to reposition the signs. Terrence says he did not twist the signs and does not know who did, but that it shows others are concerned by motorists driving too quickly on the country lane.

He argues that there have been multiple accidents in the lane which he claims have been caused by motorists travelling above 20mph. "It is a challenging lane to drive, a typical country lane, and in no circumstances should people be driving at high speeds on the road," he said.

"I have to reverse my car around a corner on the road. I've had to put a traffic cone out because of how quickly cars come down here and they come down so fast that before they've seen the cone it's underneath their car. I'm very worried that with the national speed limit sign it would encourage motorists to drive quickly.

"I've tried to challenge this on my own and feel I've not got anywhere so I need to make what is happening here public knowledge. It's bizarre to me that a council would want to fund the installation of a national speed limit sign on a road where it's clearly dangerous.

"I have lived here for 42 years and I've seen it all. Dogs getting knocked over, a little girl got hit on a horse and went over."

So worried about motorists driving too quickly outside his house, Terrence has made his own 'Go Slow' sign. He added: "I think generally it works, although sometimes people tell me to go to hell.

"Most people are respectful but it only takes one for a serious accident. No way can people be driving 70mph. I'm horrified by this.

"There are stables up on the right hand side and people are riding up and down here all the time, people use it as a walking route. It's incredibly dangerous."

A council spokesman said: "Sections of road within Trinant village have been reduced to 20mph but this lane has always been subject to the national speed limit. As part of the associated signage works for the new 20mph speed limits we identified that national speed limit signs were missing from the junction with this lane and need to be provided. We have spoken to Mr Cook and advised him of the position and the national speed limit sign will need to be installed at this site."