Derry SDLP MLA Pat Ramsey has today briefed the Assembly’s Environment Committee on the Bill to implement 20mph speed limits in residential areas.
The Bill comes after extensive public consultation as well as engagement with stakeholders was carried out by former SDLP MLA Conall McDevitt.
Mr Ramsey said the Bill was aimed at improving road safety for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists alike.
Speaking earlier, he said: “I am grateful to Conall for the time and work that has already gone into this Bill. His dedication to making our roads a safer place for cyclists and pedestrians is well known and the depth of public engagement with this Bill is a testament to his efforts.
“I am very pleased that I now have the chance to take this forward.”
Mr Ramsey said, according to research from the Department for Transport in England, if a person was hit by a car travelling at 30mph, they faced a one in five chance of being killed.
Pat Ramsey MLA
He said reducing that to 20mph would “significantly reduce” the chance of death to one in 40.
He added: “This year we continue to see an unacceptable level of death on our roads, many of them pedestrians.”
Mr Ramsey said he believed a reduced speed limit would go some way towards reducing the number of fatalities and accidents.
He concluded: “The Bill would allow the Department of Regional Development to issue exemptions for roads which may be unclassified, but that are major thoroughfares, to retain 30 mph status.”
Tags:
