Birmingham City Council has put forward a proposal to slash the speed limit on 25 main roads in the city from 40mph to 30mph.
By cutting the speed limits they aim to improve safety for all road users, as well as encourage residents to remain active by walking and cycling more. Road safety campaigners have been protesting after several fatalities on Birmingham’s roads, including three young people killed in serious crashes across the city this year.
Liz Clements, councillor and cabinet member for transport, said: “We need to prioritise people and ensure communities are safer so reducing the speed on our roads is an obvious and important part of our wider plans for how people and goods move around the city.
“We know that residents are deeply concerned about road safety, especially those who live near busy main roads, so I’d encourage as many people as possible to let us know their thoughts.”
The announcement by Birmingham City Council comes after Wales recently became the first UK nation to introduce a default 20mph speed limit on restricted roads.
Other places across the nation are now looking at the speed limits in their local area. Recently, councillors in Norwich announced they want to see speeds reduced across the city, even hinting at a potential blanket 20mph limit on all roads.
A 20mph limit is already in place in some areas of Norwich, and council members say they want to roll this out across more of the city to combat air pollution and improve road safety.
For more news and the latest information on road safety, read the weekly Anglo Liners blog. Or, request a free, no-obligation road marking quote.