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23
Oct 2023
Council removes anti-speeding scarecrows in Nidd for 'safety reasons'
North Yorkshire Council has removed several scarecrows created as part of an anti-speeding campaign in a village between Harrogate and Knaresborough.
Residents in Nidd put up about 16 scarecrows near the B6165 and Town Street this month as part of a campaign to reduce the speed limit after two recent fatal accidents.
Several were designed to look like police officers and some contained messages.
But North Yorkshire Council removed the ones immediately alongside the highways last week. Several on private land remain.
A council spokesperson said:
Several scarecrows have high visability jackets.
A police officer scarecrow.
The activists' creative scarecrow stunt has divided opinion in Nidd.
Some villagers embraced the move to raise awareness of the campaign to reduce the speed limit from 40mph to 30mph.
The B6165, which links Ripley and Knaresborough, has some sharp, narrow bends in Nidd, especially near Nidd Hall.
Villager and co-organiser Jayne Brown said the scarecrow festival served its purpose:
Ms Brown added that less than 36 hours after the scarecrows were removed a car crashed into a wall.
But others thought the stunt was ill-advised.
The clerk of Nidd Parish Council, who asked not to be named, said although it sympathised with the cause it did not think the methods were appropriate.
The clerk reiterated her previous comment, which said:
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