STRATEGIC SLOW DOWN

The UK Government is not yet imposing lower speed limits. Instead, it has given local authorities responsibility for reducing speed limits in their areas. The Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR) document Tomorrows's Roads: Safer for Everyone presents a series of measures, which it considers necessary to reduce road casualties by 40% by 2010. This strategy includes policies to reduce drink driving, improve child safety and driving standards, and impose slower speeds. It plans to redefine the hierarchy of roads before introducing new speed limits for rural roads. This reclassification process is expected to take several years, but is eventually expected to lead to a lower national speed limit for single carriageway roads. Highway engineers agree that this approach is correct. Meanwhile, the new policy document encourages local authorities to cut speeds by 10-20mph on their most dangerous roads; the Government will let them apply for overall packages of speed reductions in their Local Transport Plans. For example, 20mph zones could be introduced near schools. Although Transport 2000 opposes the decision not to introduce a 20mph speed limit for all urban areas, many local authorities welcome it, because such zones could cause huge economic losses, are costly to introduce, and could be unworkable without extensive traffic calming.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/03077683
• Corporate Authors:

  EMAP CONSTRUCT LIMITED

  151 ROSEBERY AVENUE
  LONDON,   United Kingdom  EC1R 4QX
• Authors:
  • ARNOLD, D
• Publication Date: 2000-3-9

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: p. 14-5
• Serial:
  • NEW CIVIL ENGINEER
  • Issue Number: 1346
  • Publisher: EMAP CONSTRUCT LIMITED
  • ISSN: 0307-7683

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Children; Classification; Driving; Federal government; Highways; Information management; Information, data, and knowledge; Intoxication; Local government agencies; Policy; Prevention; Quality control; Safety; Speed limits
• Uncontrolled Terms: Decreases; Quality; Responsibility
• Geographic Terms: United Kingdom
• ITRD Terms: 1661: Accident prevention; 1758: Child; 8513: Classification; 9009: Decrease; 1855: Driving (veh); 2231: Drunkenness; 183: Government (national); 2755: Highway; 8555: Information documentation; 192: Local authority; 173: Policy; 9063: Quality; 2264: Responsibility; 1665: Safety; 624: Speed limit; 8119: United Kingdom
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Highways; Policy; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00793043
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport Research Laboratory
• Files: ITRD
• Created Date: May 31 2000 12:00AM