Plans to make streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists could be approved quicker under a new system to streamline the way the council deals with concerns.

Councillors will be asked to approve a new system in which plans will no longer be based solely on how many crashes occur in an area.

Instead, the new framework proposed by Brighton and Hove City Council will take into account other factors such as air quality, concerns about speeding and the risk to pedestrians and cyclists.

The proposed changes are being made to aid the council’s, plans to try and encourage more people to cycle or walk around the city rather than driving.

Councillor Steve Davis, co-chairman of the environment, transport and sustainability committee said “This new framework is a much more robust way of improving the safety on our roads.

“Traditionally we’ve always prioritised areas where most collisions occur, but this new method will also take into account a host of other factors, including areas where people feel there’s a danger to themselves or their loved ones.

“We want people to walk and cycle more and they will only do that if they feel safe doing so.”

The council says they receive “a lot of requests” about road safety concerns including speeding and rat running, where vehicles cut through smaller residential streets to avoid traffic.

Currently, funding for these projects is limited to the areas with the most crashes in a bid to bring down casualty rates. This is similar to other councils and national highways changes, but it is a process which can lead to accusations that changes are only made after people have died.

The new system would allow the council to prioritise concerns in order to better implement road safety measures such as pedestrian crossings and Low Traffic Neighbourhood plans.

The new measures will be put before the environment, transport and sustainability committee next week and asked to approve the new system.

If approved, the new framework would be used to create a priority list for requests in order to deal with the most pressing problems first.

The changes come amid a number of plans to improve cycling and walking in Brighton and Hove including changes to Western Road.

Other plans include the proposed pilot for a Low Traffic Neighbourhood scheme in Hanover and Tarner.