By Mark HeathA CAMPAIGNING pensioner has paid for warning signs on a dangerous road – because she fears for the safety of her grandchildren.Gill Twissell forked out £200 for signs to be installed on a stretch of the B1079 between Burgh and Grundisburgh, near Woodbridge.

By Mark Heath

A CAMPAIGNING pensioner has paid for warning signs on a dangerous road – because she fears for the safety of her grandchildren.

Gill Twissell forked out £200 for signs to be installed on a stretch of the B1079 between Burgh and Grundisburgh, near Woodbridge.

Mrs Twissell, 61, has been lobbying Suffolk County Council to build a footpath on the road and hopes her generosity will spur the process on.

She took the unusual step of paying for the signs out of concern for the safety of two of her grandchildren, 10-year-old James Attwater and his brother Robert, seven, who have to walk on the road to get to school in Grundisburgh.

Mrs Twissell, from High Wycombe, who has even written to Transport Secretary Alistair Darling on the subject, said: "It's a devilish road. I can see an accident happening there one day and I don't want it to be my grandchildren, or anybody else's.

"I just happened to walk from school with one of the children one day and it really hit home how dangerous the road actually is and how dreadful it is they have to face that.

"I offered to pay for the signs just to get something happening. I want to see a footpath there at the end of all this – it's an awful situation at the moment. I am not going to give up, I'm a tenacious old thing."

Mrs Twissell's son, Philip, who lives in Burgh, said: "It's nice to be able to walk with the children to and from school, but it is a terrible road.

"We've been trying to get a pavement put in for ages, but to no avail. It is very good of mum to pay for these signs, but it's outrageous that she should have to."

It is hoped the two warning signs – featuring an adult and a child walking – will be put up at either end of the stretch of road in the near future.

A spokeswoman for Suffolk County Council said: "We are sympathetic to Mrs Twissell's concerns, but unfortunately a path on that stretch of road is unlikely at present and, therefore, we have agreed to place these signs. These are exceptional circumstances."

mark.heath@eadt.co.uk