Green light for county speed limit changes
More than 120 speed limit changes on A and B roads in Warwickshire are to get underway following months of consultation, with more than 1,000 comments being made.
The Government’s Department for Transport has given the go ahead for the work to get underway on the changes in Warwickshire following the extensive consultation.
Warwickshire County Council’s Road Safety Engineering team is now starting work on more than 120 speed limits changes on A and B class roads.
The first part of the review consisted of an assessment of existing speed limits on every A and B road in Warwickshire (except villages).
This included accident analysis and speed surveys, which were provided by the council’s Traffic Survey Team, at strategic locations on all A and B roads. These were carried out to establish whether existing speed limits are being reasonably complied with.
Following on from this ‘technical review’, an extensive consultation process began to gain a better understanding of how the public felt about the team’s proposals and culminated in seminars being given to councillors.
Since the recent final consultation stage, almost every change has been given approval by the council’s Area Committees (except Nuneaton & Bedworth who will not meet until 26/11/2008).
Jo Edwards, Senior Engineer, said: “It has been essential that any speed limit changes have the acceptance of our communities, and feedback has shown that the public are behind our recommendations.
“Many of the changes recommended will be installed on roads where there is a history of crashes where people have been injured, and therefore, we hope to see some significant benefit in terms of reducing road casualties. The speed limit review is a massive undertaking, however we envisage to have all planned changes implemented by April of next year.”
Cllr Martin Heatley, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for the Environment, said: “We are one of the leading authorities with regards to the speed limit review which has received a plethora of positive comments.
“One of the many factors why this review has been so successful is due to the effective working with county councillors and the communities we serve. The review can only have a positive effect on the these roads, as speed limits will be realigned in terms of Government policy and existing average traffic speeds.
“Not only do lower speeds improve safety, travelling at a more economical speed cuts down of fuels costs and it’s better for the environment too.”
For further information visit http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/speedlimitreview