Calls to reduce city speed limit

Built-up areas could be 20mph zones

There have been calls to cut the speed limit in Stirling’s residential streets to 20 miles per hour.

Both Stirling Greens and the SNP have proposed measures that would see the speed limit lowered on residential and shopping streets.

Green candidates at the May 4 Stirling Council election want the limit on most residential streets to fall from 30mph to 20mph. They also want increased spending on walking and cycling.

Green candidate for Stirling North Chloe Campbell said: “A switch to 20mph would make our streets safer and healthier, cutting air pollution and encouraging walking and cycling.

“At the moment we have an incomplete patchwork of 20mph zones around the Stirling Council area and a lack of investment in speed reduction and crossings to make our streets safer.

“Establishing area-wide 20mph zones is a cost-effective way to reduce speeds and alongside investment in walking and cycling infrastructure can make our communities friendlier, better places.”

SNP environment and housing spokesperson, Jim Thomson said: “We are flattered that our policy of 20mph speed limits is being picked up by other local political parties and look forward to working with others to make our streets safer.

“There is a lot of evidence to suggest that a reduced speed limit on residential and urban roads considerably reduces the risk of fatalities if and when accidents occur.

“This policy is about making our streets safer, in particular for children and older people.

“Therefore I hope it’s a policy that everyone can get behind when Stirling Council reconvenes under a new administration next month.”

Stirling Labour said that enforcing a new limit could be a problem.

Stirling North candidate Danny Gibson said: “We want to spend more on walking and cycling but Mark Ruskell’s Green Party voted for an SNP budget that cut councils’ funding this year by £170 million, which didn’t help.

“Keeping our streets safe for pedestrians and cyclists is one area where all parties agree and anything that achieves that is worth considering.

“That’s why, whenever practical, we’ll support 20mph zones if communities want them but reducing the speed limit alone isn’t enough and I wonder how the Greens plan to enforce these new speeding limits.

“Police Scotland are responsible for this and, given the chaos their decision to remove traffic warden services brought to Stirling, I can’t see them deploying more officers with speed guns.” Stirling Tories hit out at the proposal. Stirling West candidate Neil Benny said:“This is simply a Green Party assault on car ownership, which they are ideologically opposed to.

“People in Stirling need cars, especially those who commute or live in remote areas.

“While we need to do everything we can to make the streets safe and encourage walking and cycling, we also need to be pragmatic about how our roads are laid out.

“Stirling Council has over the years wasted a huge amount of money on traffic calming, mini-roundabouts and speed humps.

“I for one would rather we spent money on resurfacing our roads and fixing potholes than further wasting money on lavish traffic schemes in the city centre.”