20mph: slower speeds and safer streets for more areas from Monday

Safer Streets, better places...

20mph speed limits are being introduced into many residential areas of Brighton & Hove from Monday (June 16) as part of the council’s campaign for safer streets.

The limits will be legally enforceable and will cut speeds in residential neighbourhoods ranging from Portslade in the west, to Whitehawk in the east and Coldean in the north.

Streets where the speed limit has been lowered will be clearly identified with signposts and road markings.

They will include Preston Drove, Stanford Avenue and Surrenden Road.  Initially removed from the scheme after doubts about public support, the streets were reinstated following a campaign by residents and a petition signed by over 700 local people.

Early monitoring from the first phase of speed limits introduced to the city centre in 2013, has shown a decrease in traffic speeds on 74 per cent of roads.  The number and severity of collisions and casualties have also fallen in in the central area.

Lead councillor for transport Ian Davey said:  “We’ve seen traffic speeds fall and fewer collisions and serious injuries where we’ve introduced lower speed limits in the past. With this second phase we are continuing to introduce slower traffic speeds where people said they wanted them.

“Within a few years slower speeds and other road safety measures will have helped make Brighton & Hove is a safer, more peaceful and pleasant place to live, work and visit.”

A Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents study showed that at 20mph there was a 2.5 per cent chance of pedestrians being fatally injured, compared to a 20 per cent chance at 30mph. A Department for Transport paper on setting local speed limits reports that on urban roads with low average traffic speeds, every 1mph reduction in average speed can reduce the frequency of collisions by around 6 per cent.

Information and a map covering 20mph zones are elsewhere on the council’s website.