Call for 20mph speed limit in residential areas across Scotland

Cycling campaigners have called on Members of the Scottish Parliament to reduce speed limits in residential areas to 20mph to improve road safety and encourage more people to take to their bikes.

Their efforts are being supported by Glasgow City Council, which says that such a step is a “key priority,” according to The Scotsman.

Peter Hawkins from CTC Scotland told the newspaper: "Cycling is hard to promote to non-cyclists because it appears unsafe because of the behaviour of drivers. Twenty miles per hour should be the norm for all residential streets and a maximum of 30mph on main roads. Enforcement is lax – speed limits are widely disregarded."

And Dave du Feu from Spokes, the Lothian Cycle Campaign, told the paper he believed that 20mph limits should apply in "all residential areas".

However, the newspaper says that motoring organisations claim that lowering the limit to 20mph across the country is unenforceable, and that it should only be introduced in certain areas, pointing to the experience of cities in England such as Oxford and Portsmouth where 20mph limits have been introduced.

It quoted Neil Greig, Policy & Research Director at the Institute of Advanced Motorists, who claimed that solutions such as segregated cycle lanes should be used instead, saying: "Investment in high-quality cycle routes that separate inherently unsafe cars and bikes is needed rather than unenforceable speed limits in areas which are already safe. People cycle in Holland because they don't have to worry about traffic conflict anywhere on their journey."

Mr Greig added that improvements to road planning were also having an impact. "By designing estates so only local traffic enters them, speeds are already reducing, and in most new-build areas 20mph is already the norm,” he stated.

AA President Edmund King took the view that motorists were prepared to adhere to 20mph limits in specific circumstances, saying: “"Targeted 20mph zones can be effective if drivers understand and respect why the limit is lower,” adding, “drivers understand why limits should be lower outside schools and where children play but this does not always mean you need a 20mph limit 24 hours per day."

Earlier this year, Glasgow City Council said that it planned to introduce compulsory 20mph zones in all residential areas across the city, subject to consultation. The measure was one of 20 proposals put forward by a health commission set up by Council Leader Steven Purcell to combat health inequalities in the city and ensure a lasting legacy from the 2014 Commonwealth Games, which are being held there.

The nation’s capital has already implemented 20mph zones in a number of areas, and more could follow, according to Gordon MacKenzie, Transport Convener at Edinburgh City Council.

Mr MacKenzie told The Scotsman: "We have already introduced 20mph zones around all Edinburgh's primary schools, some secondary schools, and in many residential areas. In addition, we're working with a number of agencies to develop a new road safety plan for Edinburgh, in which cyclist safety is a key consideration."

Meanwhile, new research has shown that the percentage of the capital’s residents using their bikes to commute had risen for the fourth successive year.

In a vehicle count conducted by Spokes earlier this month, reported in the Evening News, bicycles made up 13% of vehicles surveyed between 8am and 9am, up from 12.5% a year earlier.

The newspaper added that according to Edinburgh City Council, cyclists account for 4% of all journeys across the city.

However, that’s some way short of the target of 15% that the city committed itself to achieve by 2020 in May this year when it signed the Charter of Brussels, which appeared ambitious at the time, as reported on road.cc.