MEMBERS of the public have been urged to help snare speeders on some of Kendal's busiest roads.

An appeal has been launched to find volunteers to be trained by police to operate hand-held speed guns.

It comes as a senior police officer admitted the force no longer has the resources to tackle the problem head-on.

Motorists caught cannot be prosecuted but the speed-gun operators will pass on the details to police who will send a letter to the drivers.

If a pattern begins to develop with the same offenders police will pay them a visit to warn them about their behaviour and potentially set up mobile vans at certain times and places.

The idea is the brainchild of Liberal Democrat Cllr Clare Feeney-Johnson, who represents Kendal Castle on Cumbria County Council and Kendal Nether on South Lakeland District Council.

She has been battling to find a solution for the speeding problems in the heart of Kendal for more than a year.

Areas she wants to see targeted are the one-way Aynam Road, which runs alongside the River Kent, and a stretch of Valley Drive.

A similar scheme was launched in Endmoor in 2014 and caught 156 vehicles speeding in its first six weeks of operation - with some motorists travelling at speeds of up to 54mph in a 30mph zone.

PC Paul Latham, inspector for South Lakeland East, said police were fully behind the plan, adding it was about trying to change peoples' behaviour.

"This is not a draconian measure aimed at trying to prosecute people," he said.

"A lot of people complain about speeding, this is an opportunity to do something about it.

"Police do a certain amount of work on road safety but because of pressures we cannot give it the attention it needs."

The volunteers usually work in pairs to help each other record speed and registration numbers.

The call comes after several knock backs in Cllr Feeney-Johnson's efforts to slow down foot-to-the-floor motorists on roads in her ward.

She presented a petition to Richard Rhodes, Cumbria's Police and Crime Commissioner, to try a get a speed camera installed on Aynam Road.

But research from Cumbria County Council suggested there was not a big enough speed problem to justify spending around £70,000 on a fixed-point camera.

MORE TOP STORIES:

However, it did find that there was a serious issue during the night time and early hours with boy racers.

Undeterred by the setback, she met with PC Latham and stood next to the crossing on Aynam Road for about an hour and a half in the early summer.

One issue that came to light was cars not stopping on the pelican crossing, opposite the footbridge which leads to Abbott Hall park.

Then, the councillor sent out a letter calling for volunteers - but received just one reply.

Although unrelated, this is the latest attempt to slow drivers in Kendal down as the 20's Plenty campaign to introduce mandatory 20mph speed limits across all of the town gathers pace.

Earlier this month Kendal Town Council voted to look into the costs of slashing speed limits in parts of Kendal.

A public consultation on the issue, which drew 663 responses, showed that 60 per cent of people were in favour of 20mph limits on residential roads.

But there was insufficient support for a ‘blanket’ 20mph limit across Kendal as a whole – the preferred option of the 20’s Plenty for Kendal campaign group.

Email clare.feeney-johnson@cumbria.gov.uk to find out more information.