Conservative candidate Sean Houlston has written to Cheshire East Council demanding answers over the prolonged delay in installing permanent speed limit signs on the A534 Congleton Road between Sandbach and Arclid.
Mr Houlston recently visited the road with Odd Rode Councillor Liz Wardlaw after residents raised concerns about the lack of permanent signage following highway improvement works.
Residents have questioned why 40mph markings remain painted on the road while permanent terminal signs have still not been installed, leaving uncertainty over where the speed limit begins and ends.
Correspondence seen by Mr Houlston shows Cheshire East Highways first promised temporary signs in September 2025. In January 2026, the council said permanent signs would be installed by mid-February following delays with its supplier.
However, more than five months after that deadline, permanent signs have still not appeared.
Sean Houlston said:
"I do not have strong views on whether the speed limit on this stretch of road should be 40mph or something different. That is a matter for the appropriate road safety assessments.
"My concern is much simpler than that. Drivers should be able to clearly see what the speed limit is. At the moment, the absence of permanent signs creates unnecessary confusion and, if enforcement were to take place in the future, there is a risk that motorists could end up being wrongly fined or caught out because the signage is not clear.
"Residents deserve an explanation for why this has taken so long. Cheshire East Council needs to set out what has caused the delay and, most importantly, when the permanent signs will finally be installed."
Mr Houlston has now written to Cheshire East Council asking why the promised works have not been completed, what has caused the delays, whether the current signage complies with the relevant legal requirements, and when residents can finally expect the permanent speed limit signs to be installed.
