A public consultation will get underway early next week to ask local people if they’d like to keep lower speed limits on some of the borough’s busiest roads.
The council will shortly introduce a 20mph pilot scheme on some 'A' and 'B' roads in the borough where the town hall is the highway authority. The rollout of appropriate signage and road markings will take place over the course of the coming days and weeks.
Once implemented they will join Wandsworth’s existing borough-wide 20mph zone which has seen a lower limit in place in virtually every residential side street since 2017 – and which was extended to include five more ‘B’ roads earlier this year.
And from December 1 onwards residents will be able to take part in a consultation that will help determine if these lower limits are retained on this latest list of 25 ‘A’ and ‘B’ roads which are being incorporated into the zone as part of a six month trial scheme.
The list includes Garratt Lane, Merton Road, Lower Richmond Road, Putney Bridge Road, Queenstown Road, Bedford Hill, Mitcham Lane, Lavender Hill, Burntwood Lane and Earlsfield Road.
It does not include any of the borough’s strategic trunk roads which are all controlled and managed by Transport for London. The council has previously urged the Mayor and TfL to follow suit and lower the speed limit on their network of “Red Routes” in Wandsworth to 20mph.
The council’s transport spokesman Cllr John Locker said: “I would encourage local people who support safer streets to take part in this forthcoming consultation. These are some of the borough’s busiest roads and we believe a 20mph limit will make a big difference to people’s safety and quality of life.
“We have already seen a reduction in vehicle speeds within our existing 20mph zone and it is clear that drivers are getting the message to slow down and the vast majority are doing so.
“Lower speed limits should mean safer streets and this will hopefully encourage other forms of sustainable transport like cycling and walking. It should also means quieter streets which will also be welcomed.
“Accidents involving collisions between pedestrians and vehicles are three times less likely to be fatal if the speed of the impact is 20mph compared to 30mph. Studies have shown that at 30mph, 55 per cent of collisions result in a fatality while at 20mph this figure plummets to just 17 per cent.
“We believe this change could also prove beneficial for local air quality too. A study by Imperial College found that diesel vehicles with engines of between 1.4l and 2.0l produce fewer harmful emissions at 20mph than at 30mph while smaller petrol and diesel engine vehicles both generate fewer particulates when driven at this lower speed, so this change has the potential to bolster our efforts to reduce pollution.
“We are also renewing our calls for the Mayor and TfL to do the same and begin taking the steps to introduce a 20mph limit on their Red Routes. These are London’s busiest and most congested roads and which also suffer the worst impacts of air pollution. Reducing the speed limit on these strategic roads could provide relief for millions of Londoners.”
Enforcement of speed limits is carried out by the Metropolitan Police, with the council working in support of their efforts. Any revenue generated by speed fines goes direct to HM Treasury - not the town hall.
The list of roads included in this consultation appears below. The consultation will begin on December 1. To take part after that date please visit the council's website here - https://haveyoursay.citizenspace.com/wa ... 0mph-2020/.
For more information about 20mph zones visit www.wandsworth.gov.uk/20mph.
Last year the council declared a climate emergency and set targets to become carbon neutral by 2030 and a zero-carbon organisation by 2050. To find out more visit the council’s website here https://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/climatechange.
‘A' Roads
- Albert Bridge Road
- Buckhold Road
- Falcon Road
- Garratt Lane
- Lavender Hill
- Merton Road
- Mitcham Lane
- Mitcham Road
- Putney Bridge Road
- Putney High Street
- Putney Hill
- Queen's Circus
- Queenstown Road
- St John's Hill
- Tibbet's Ride
- Wandsworth Bridge Road
- Wimbledon Park Side
‘B' Roads
- Bedford Hill
- Broomwood Road
- Burntwood Lane
- Church Lane
- Earlsfield Road
- Lombard Road
- Lower Richmond Road
- Nightingale Lane
- Queen's Ride
- Spencer Park
- St James's Drive
- Summerstown
- Vicarage Crescent
- Westbridge Road
- Windmill Road
