'Speed limit does not make roads feel safer'

Enid Jackson said the new speed limits do not make the roads feel any safer

Residents say they are concerned new reduced speed limits have made roads more dangerous than they used to be.

Cambridgeshire County Council agreed to introduce 20mph zones in Ramsey and Bury last year as part of a widespread scheme to improve road safety.

Resident Enid Jackson said the limits do not make the roads feel safer and were "not a lot of good...not many people do 20mph".

The council said it would review the impacts of the overall 20mph programme and report to the highways and transport committee in two years.

'Unnecessary'

Nicola Wilcox told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the new limit had caused "more near misses than before", after she almost witnessed a crash.

She said the low speed limit on some more main roads “just frustrates people”, as some stick to the limit but others do not.

"I think it is not working as it is, either it needs full enforcement and we deal with driving slowly, or there needs to be a full review to make it more targeted," Ms Wilcox said.

David Lewis backed the more targeted approach. He said: "In some places it is unnecessary. The main road going into Ramsey does not need it.

"I think [the 20mph zone] should be modified, the problem is they made it everywhere when they did not need to, the main road does not need to be 20mph coming from Bury to Ramsey, and you cannot speed in the town centre anyway."

The Ramsey 20mph zone was approved following a consultation. Local councillors reviewed feedback and Ramsey Town Council confirmed support for the scheme.

A county council spokesperson said: "Studies have shown even a 1mph drop in speed reduces collisions by 6%.

"Reducing speed limits from 30mph to 20mph can cut pollution by 30 per cent and reduce the chance of a severe or fatal injury in the event of a collision by a staggering 60%.

"In areas where lower speed limits are introduced, people also become more confident to go out walking and cycling, or use other forms of non-motorised transport."

Cambridgeshire County Council has also proposed extending 20mph limits to almost 40 more roads in the city centre as part of its Transforming Cities programme