New Forest, Exmoor and Dartmoor pony warnings added to Highway Code

Campaigners have called for tougher measures to prevent animal road deaths in the New Forest

Road safety warnings mentioning New Forest, Exmoor and Dartmoor ponies are set to be included in the Highway Code.

Advice about driving close to feral and semi-feral ponies is to be incorporated in the code following a review.

Campaigners in the New Forest, who have called for measures to reduce animal road deaths, have welcomed the changes.

The new wording is due to be incorporated into the Highway Code early next year.

There have been calls for average speed cameras to be installed in the New Forest in a bid to cut the number of livestock killed when they wander onto roads in the national park.

The changes to the Highway Code were part of an 18-month review into the rules governing road use and driving in the UK.

The new wording, which specifically mentions the ponies which wander freely throughout New Forest in Hampshire, as well as those on Exmoor and Dartmoor in Devon, was requested by The British Horse Society (BHS).

The final version of the Highway Code will come in to force on 29 January

The Department for Transport said: "We agreed such wild animals are more prevalent in those areas which warranted a specific mention."

The Highway Code advises drivers to slow down to 10mph while passing a horse on the road and give at least a two-metre gap.

"Feral or semi feral ponies which are found in areas such as the New Forest, Exmoor or Dartmoor require the same consideration as ridden horses when approaching or passing," the new text states.

Gilly Jones, of the New Forest Roads Awareness group, said she was "extremely pleased" at the addition to the Highway Code.

She said: "It's certainly a first - it's still about raising the awareness of feral and semi-feral ponies and it's very positive what we can achieve with agencies working together.

"We're still getting a horrific number of speeding drivers who lack a basic knowledge about driving in the forest."

Following the necessary parliamentary approvals, the final approved version of the Highway Code.