A CAR that spun out of control and through a garden fence could have "killed" a young girl, it has been warned.

Portslade councillor Peter Atkinson has called for "urgent action" after a Mini smashed into a resident's back garden on Monday, August 16.

The white Mini Cooper spun out of control on the corner of Bush Farm Drive on the Downs Park estate, crashing into the fence of a back garden causing a cement post to topple into a resident’s garden play area.

The resident, Theresa McNeil, said that her young daughter often plays in this area of the garden and could have been "seriously hurt or even killed had she been there at the time."

There is no suggestion that the driver of the Mini was speeding.

But Portslade councillor Peter Atkinson said road safety is an issue as other cars have been spotted at speed there.

The Argus:

He said: “Residents have been raising concerns about Bush Farm Drive being used as a rat run for a long time now.

"I have raised it with the council on many occasions but to no avail.

"The council needs to look at speeding on both these roads as one issue as cars speeding along Fox Way then use the cut through at Bush Farm Drive and continue to speed along there."

According to the councillor, the "rat run" is caused by cars speeding along Fox Way but having to slow down when they reach a build up of traffic going towards the roundabout at the Hangleton link road.

Drivers then attempt to save time by entering the top part of Bush Farm Drive and drive round to the lower part and emerge back on to Fox Way.

Cllr Atkinson is also concerned that some motorists using Fox Way are now regularly behaving as if the stretch of road from Chalky Road to the link road is a "racing track" that will only get worse as traffic increases from a new development at the top of Mile Oak.

He said: "When they take this supposed short cut, they often put their foot down and far exceed the 20mph speed limit clearly endangering pedestrians as they hurtle round a long bend in the road."