Sustrans welcomes Scotland’s Safer Streets Bill

John Lauder

John Lauder

Sustrans has welcomed the launch of the Safer Streets Bill, which seeks to make 20mph the standard speed on residential streets in Scotland. John Lauder, the sustainable transport charity’s national director for Scotland, argued the Bill is great news for people who walk and cycle.

“When it comes to saving lives and reducing injury on our roads, the benefits of 20mph speed limits are well known but worth repeating,” Lauder wrote in his blog on the charity’s website. 

“Road casualty data from the Department for Transport shows significantly lower casualty rates on 20mph roads, and a 2009 study of London speed limits found that the introduction of 20mph zones was associated with a 42% reduction in road casualties.”

Lauder suggests evidence from the South Edinburgh pilot area points to a 20% reduction in casualties. “These kinds of numbers cannot be ignored,” he wrote.

He also cites a new study by the Glasgow Centre for Population Health outlined how repeating the success of the South Edinburgh pilot nationwide would lead to a 9.5% reduction in injuries and deaths on our roads across the whole of Scotland, leading to a saving from accidents avoided of £27.1m per year.

“The city-wide roll-out of 20mph speed limits across the Scottish capital, supported by Scottish Government Funding through Sustrans Scotland’s Community Links Programme, underline the success of slower, safer streets,” Lauder wrote.

“We’re still awaiting the thorough evaluation of Edinburgh’s rollout of 20mph speed limits, but already we know that in the past year road casualties are down by 24% and those killed or seriously injured are down by a third. 

“This is consistent with all the evidence that says that 20mph speed limits reduces both the number of collisions and their severity. We look forward to more detailed evaluation from City of Edinburgh Council in due course.”

Sustrans Scotland supports a nationwide default speed limit of 20mph on residential streets, though local authorities would still be able to designate streets as 30mph if they think they are safe and there is a need for people to travel faster.  

“We think that 20mph is right for our streets,” Lauder wrote. “There are a range of reasons why you would do this on a national scale. Firstly, making 20mph speed limits more consistent across the country will make it clearer to people what the speed limit is, and help people in vehicles to adjust to slower streets.

“This approach will save councils money. Currently, Scotland has a bit-by-bit approach to designating 20mph areas that can be expensive for local authorities to implement. A nationwide approach prevents local authorities from having to follow long-winded, complex procedure and allows Scotland to run a national public awareness campaign instead of multiple smaller campaigns as happens now.”

Lauder suggests that 20mph streets would go some way to meeting the national priority of getting more people in Scotland travelling on foot or by bike, which would also help towns and cities thrive.

“Lower speeds on roads help people to feel safer and more likely to choose to walk or cycle for everyday journeys,” Lauder suggested. “Lower speeds also make retail areas more pleasant for journeys on foot or by bike, which can have a positive impact on trade. The Scottish Government is right to encourage people to walk and cycle more and this Bill enhances that aim. 

“Our vision is for active travel to be an easy, safe and attractive choice for everyone throughout the UK. Sustrans Scotland will support the Bill’s passage through Parliament and we hope as many MSPs as possible will support this, to ensure a safer and more active nation for everyone.”