Parish chiefs are calling on motorists to slow down and obey the law as they speed through villages along the A140.

The major route is used by thousands of drivers everyday and has a national speed limit in some sections.

But in several areas the road runs through small villages with homes either side.

Earlier this month police caught 16 drivers in Brockford Street, near Mendlesham and Wetheringsett, breaking the limit over a two-hour period.

Helen Orton, chairman of Mendlesham Parish Council, said it was “not surprising” that drivers were speeding.

“It does not surprise me at all; it goes from 50-30mph and it’s still a straight bit of road so people do not always expect it and I suppose other people, if they are going at 50, just carry on,” she said.

“The 30mph speed limit is there for a reason – there’s the junction that comes out at Mendlesham on to the A140 which is in the limit and if traffic is going quickly along there it’s not an easy junction to pull out of.”

Martin Lawrence, chairman of Wetheringsett-cum-Brockford Parish Council, said drivers coming from outside the county were causing problems.

He said: “My own experience is a lot of the registrations that go by are not local and I think on a number of times it’s some smart aleck from London who is not respecting the limit.

“There’s certainly a problem with speeding – you can be doing the limit and someone goes past doing 80mph.

“Along the road there are so many access points for farms, at this time of year there is heavy machinery being used.”

Following the speed checks police said residents had complained on “a number of occasions” about the issue.

Ivan Richardson is parish council chairman at Stonham Parva, a village on the road.

He said: “It’s a really big concern in the village, it comes up at most parish council meetings.

“Quite a few people have school children and we have no crossing in Stonham Parva. The police are always cooperative with setting up speed traps going in and out of the village and they do catch a lot of motorists speeding.”