The white lines that send drivers down the middle of the road

Motorists are baffled by lines painted on a country road which they claim is an accident waiting to happen.

East Riding Council had broken white lines painted on both sides of Meaux Lane, Routh, in East Yorkshire, similar to cycle tracks.

The markings don’t appear to correspond with the Highway Code and have left motorists unsure what to do.

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Greg Bailey, an optometrist from Hull, said: “In all my years of driving I’ve never seen anything like it.

“The lines are hatched, four or five feet off each side of the road. They are supposed to be calming lines, but they make you want to drive in the middle of the road.

“This is going to cause a major accident.”

Tickton and Routh parish council said people were finding it confusing.

A spokesman for the parish councillors said: “Tickton and Routh Parish Council were aware that road lining work was taking place.

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“They are aware that residents who live nearby have queried the meaning of the road markings with East Riding as they are different to anything they have seen before. East Riding responded to the residents that these are road calming measures.

“The parish council has been told by these residents that they believe it would be in the interests of those using the road if details of what these lines mean are displayed as at the moment they may be misinterpreted and may actually lead people to believe they can only drive in the middle of the road.”

East Riding Council said the lines had been painted as part of a road safety scheme which has also reduced the speed limit to 40mph, with the marks beginning at the beginning and end of the “zone” and any straight points in-between.

A council spokesman said: “It is to make the road appear narrower so people slow down.

“This road is frequented by horse-riders and it is a road safety scheme.”