Urgent calls have been made for a speed limit to be reduced near a crossing at a new housing development on the outskirts of Norwich before someone is killed or seriously injured.

Parents living at the new Roundhouse Park development at Cringleford currently have to cross the busy Newmarket Road to take their children to the primary school on Cantley Lane.

There is a crossing close to the housing development but the speed limit approaching the crossing is 50mph which has resulted in several near misses.

And now parents are urging transport bosses to do something to make the crossing safer and prevent a near miss becoming a tragedy.

Sam Furlong, 42, a mother-of-four, said she is petrified of crossing the road - which she has to do to take her children to school - and wants to see the speed limit approaching the crossing cut.

She said: 'You've got cars coming at 50mph - I've probably nearly been run over five or six times and am becoming more and more scared of crossing that road.

'For a child or anyone to get killed or injured would be terrible but its not long before that's going to happen which is a horrible thing to say.

'It's not just me, it's everyone. We've all had several near misses.'

Mrs Furlong said the situation could improve for some in 2013 when a new primary school opens at the Roundhouse Park development, meaning youngsters living at the development will no longer have to cross the road, but added that youngsters from elsewhere would still have to cross that road.

She said: 'I personally would like to see the speed brought down before they get to the crossing.'

Mrs Furlong lives at Roundhouse Park with her husband Carl, children Grace, one-and-a-half, Toby, six, Hollie, 17, and Elliot, 12, who was born with a catalogue of conditions caused by a rare chromosomal abnormality.

Elliot's story was closely followed by the Evening News since he won Brave Child of the Year category in the 2003 Local Heroes' competition.

A spokesman for Norfolk Couunty Council said: 'We can change the speed limit but would it change the speed of the traffic? We can change the speed limit with the best of intentions but its much more difficult to change the actual behaviour of drivers if they don't feel its sensible for that class of road.'

He said the main problem was that for most of the day, and outside school term time, the crossing was very lightly used which means that drivers become so used to the crossing lights being green that they may be caught by surprise when the light is red and people are crossing.

In response to this, last summer the county council installed reactive signs linked to the crossing controls meaning that when the crossing button is pressed, the signs are activated, warning drivers that the crossing ahead is in use.

• Are you campaigning to get a speed limit cut on a dangerous road near you? Call reporter Peter Walsh on 01603 772436 or email peter.walsh@archant.co.uk