A SCHOOL bus driver believes a child will be killed on a stretch of road in Melksham after a £4,500 scheme to improve a crossing was delayed.

Donald Millard said he fears for childrens' safety as they negotiate speeding traffic travelling along Blackmore Road and Sandridge Road.

Residents living close to the double roundabout and crossing scheme are also protesting about Wiltshire County Council's decision to delay the improvements.

Independent consultants Transport Research Laboratory were called in this year to look at the roundabout system installed in 2000 after 13-year-old Michael Viveash was knocked down.

Consultants drew up a list of improvements including more road signs and anti-skid surfacing. But county councillors dismissed spending the £4,500 on the project out of this year's overstretched budget and shelved it until next year.

The project will be one of many bidding for £150,000 allocated to road safety in April.

Mr Millard, who lives a stone's throw from the notorious roundabout network and drives children to and from nearby Forest and Sandridge Primary School every day, said he is furious about the decision.

He said: "We are obviously angry, disappointed and disillusioned at the council's decision about a very dangerous situation.

"One woman sweeps up the debris from accidents every week.

"I have been at the scene of several accidents and administered first aid. The problem is that not all accidents are reported to the police. It is a deathtrap. I watch parents and children trying to cross Blackmore Road to get to the crossing and it is a hazard.

"Lorries are always crossing the other side of Blackmore Road to turn towards the town centre."

Mr Millard and residents living close to the road believe bad lighting, tight bends, poor crossing location and speeding traffic is a killer combination.

Cllr Angie Barker, who issued a Notice of Motion to the county council for action to be taken, said: "There is a clear highway safety problem here and officers agreed or else they wouldn't have come forward with the recommendation that we spend £4,500 on improvements.

"We are talking about a very small amount of money that could have made a big difference and may have saved a life."