20 MPH SPEED LIMITS IN RESIDENTIAL AREAS:
BRIEFING NOTE
Middlesbrough has achieved all three of the ‘headline’ ten-year casualty reduction targets set by the previous Government. In 2010, there were:
· No fatalities;
· 30 people seriously injured; and
· 3 children seriously injured
on the Borough’s Roads, the lowest totals on record.
The challenge is maintain this momentum in the coming years against a background of reduced capital and revenue resources. This means that the introduction of area-wide physical traffic calming measures is no longer the ‘default’ option.
Although a number of streets in the Borough (particularly those in the older residential areas around the town centre) are already subject to a 20 mph speed limit, nearly all of these limits are backed up by physical traffic calming measures such as road humps to ensure that they are self-enforcing – these are known as 20 mph zones.
However, experience elsewhere in the UK and abroad has shown that the introduction of 20 mph speed limits covering a wide area can be effective in reducing vehicle speeds without the need for physical traffic calming measures. This approach has recently been adopted in a number of UK cities including Portsmouth and Oxford, and the results have been encouraging. For example, average speeds on roads in Portsmouth fell significantly after the introduction of a city-wide 20 mph speed limit on residential roads in 2008, and the number of casualties fell by 22% between 2008 and 2010.
Given the above, a study was carried out in 2010 to investigate the feasibility of introducing 20 mph speed limits in all residential areas of the Borough. A three-year implementation programme was developed, based on an analysis of current speeds and recorded casualties, with the highest priority areas identified for implementation in Year 1. The Plan overleaf illustrates the proposed implementation programme, with the areas highlighted in red programmed for 2011/12 and those highlighted in amber and green programmed for 2012/13 and 2013/14 respectively.
Speeds and casualties will be monitored following introduction of the new speed limits to assess their effectiveness. In areas where speeding continues to be a problem, the use of targeted interventions will be considered – such interventions could include camera enforcement or the introduction of localised traffic calming measures.
ROB FARNHAM
Traffic Engineering Manager
6 July 2010
