A COMMUNITY group has been left in shock after figures revealed thousands of drivers speeding through their town on a weekly basis.

Burnham Community Action Group met with Essex Police representatives at a meeting at the town hall in Chapel Road to discuss issues in the area.

Burnham community police officer John Davey and community protection team leader Adrian Rayner were among those in attendance.

Figures collated from automatic traffic counts revealed that in a single week, 40,470 vehicles passed in and out of the town above 35mph, with 736 driving at more than 50mph in the 30mph zone.

The areas which were monitored for speeding included Maldon Road, Church Road near the railway bridge and Southminster Road.

Group chairman Kenneth Harris said: “Unless we get the information out, we won’t get a reaction.

“The first reaction was one of disbelief and questioning the figures.

“When accepted, there was deep concern and a call for prosecutions, followed by general agreement that something has to be done.”

Other issues which were discussed were the difficulty of recruiting special police constables to Burnham.

Mr Davey said: “Currently there are no specials in Maldon. They are all based in Chelmsford. I have tried to get specials here but it’s a struggle.”

“I’ve been here a couple of weeks and I’ve had five arrests since I’ve been here, mostly for drugs.”

He added: “If I can make this work, I will. If I was to be the Burnham police officer for the rest of my career, I would be fine with that.”