Councillors most closely engaged with their communities want Suffolk County Council to remove the obstructions holding back changes to make local roads safer.
A motion will go before Mid Suffolk District Council next week, supporting 20mph limits where local people want them, and calling for a simpler, more transparent process to decide all speed limit changes.
Motion
- Mid Suffolk District Council states its strong support for communities across Mid Suffolk who wish to adopt lower speed limits including 20mph limits.
- Mid Suffolk District Council calls on Suffolk County Council to:
- a) improve road safety by reviewing its criteria for speed limits to achieve a more ambitious approach to speed reduction where needed, by following the Surrey County Council model, particularly in publishing tables of average speeds and what reduction is allowed,
- b) adopt a similar aspiration to Surrey County Council of zero killed or seriously injured (KSI) in road accidents,
- c) make the process of revising speed limits, or extending already reduced limits, expeditious, less costly, less complex, and more transparent.
- The Chair of Mid Suffolk District Council will write to Suffolk County Council to urge it takes on board our recommendations.
Proposer: Cllr Jen Overett (Elmswell and Woolpit) Seconder: Cllr David Bradbury (Thurston)
Cllr Overett said:
“Most of us know of families who have suffered loss or injury on our roads, and the statistics on the huge benefits of speed reduction on public safety are really clear.
Yet I know through the recent hard work of Woolpit parish council, that even where there is overwhelming local support for speed reductions in residential areas, Suffolk County Council (SCC) requires parishes to jump through time-consuming hoops and spend significant amounts of residents’ money to apply for 20mph areas. The Council then makes its decision behind closed doors, including sometimes opting to deny the wishes of local communities.
It’s regrettable that the County Administration has regularly voted down Green opposition motions to achieve safer streets for pedestrians and cyclists. It’s time for SCC to commit to improving safety on our roads, including a target of zero deaths and serious injuries by 2050. A more open and simpler process is needed to free up parish council time and money for other vital tasks and to give local people more control over speed limits in their communities.”