As a father of two young children, I notice the inequity and unfairness of our streets on a daily basis as we walk around our neighbourhood.
For decades, we have built our communities around the car and in doing so, we have created places that are unsafe and unhealthy. It is a stark contrast to how I grew up in Cardiff when I was able to walk to school, on my own, from a young age.
Despite my six-year old’s insistence that he knows how to act safely on the street, the accident figures speak for themselves. Figures show that accidents involving children spike during school drop-off or pick-up times. We also know that road traffic accidents are the main cause of death for children and young people aged five to 29 years.
Read more: The three major issues people have with Wales new 20mph speed limit plans
Children are naturally active, so it’s no surprise to me that seven times as many children would like to cycle to school as currently do and five times as many would like to scoot. Unfortunately, many parents cite safety as the main barrier to an active school run and, to feel safe, many decide to use the car which just adds to the problem.
Our insistence as a society, to drive our children to and from school has filled our streets with cars at exactly the times of day that children are most likely to be there. Through our own actions, we’re putting our children at risk.
We know that a key reason for people not walking or cycling more, is a perception of road safety. Whilst reducing speeds to 20mph will not automatically result in fewer vehicles, the chances of surviving an impact from a vehicle at 20mph is considerably higher than at 30mph. Reducing traffic speeds will undoubtedly make our streets safer.
20mph limits therefore act as child protection, freeing them to explore, move, be fit, healthy and active, have fun and see friends. It’s also what children want! Sustrans research shows that nearly half of children wanted to cycle to school but only 4% were allowed to.
As a proposal, 20mph speed limits highlight some of the challenges and hypocrisies around the implementation of road safety measures. Perceptions, reinforced through media reports, of communities campaigning against speed restrictions, miss an important point.
NIMBYism (Not In My Back Yard) is often the popularist view to development. The offer of a speed reduction to 20mph however, appears to have created JIMBYism (Just In My Back Yard), with communities requesting speed reductions in their own streets, but less eager to be restricted once outside of their own neighbourhood.
A commonly cited concern about reduced speed limits is that they result in higher vehicle emissions because cars need to start and stop more often. Actually the proposal in Wales is to introduce a change in speed “limits”, rather than “zones”. A “zone” is reinforced through traffic calming measures like speed humps. Speed humps are likely to result in breaking and acceleration, but speed limits are only governed through signs. There is no reason why drivers need to brake and accelerate more in a 20mph speed limit.
In fact, research suggests that 20mph limits in London have significantly reduced the most toxic emissions in built-up roads. With Wales having some of the worst air quality in the UK, contributing to an estimated 1,000 to 1,400 deaths per year, 20mph limits have a role to play in making our communities not only safer but cleaner, helping to protect our environment.
Another concern commonly raised is that slower speeds will result in congestion. This has been reinforced by rather questionable newspaper articles showing queues of cars resulting from the introduction of a reduced speed limit. Traffic jams are typically the result of car numbers. Too many cars, generally trying to drive too quickly, on roads too small to manage them. Although it may sound counter-intuitive, often travelling at a slow, constant speed will allow higher volumes of cars to get from A to B quicker in a free-flowing manner.
Quantifying the impact of improving road safety is relatively straightforward. It’s been calculated that the introduction of 20mph speed limits across Wales would save between six to 10 lives and 1,200 to 2,000 casualties avoided each year, at a value of prevention of £58m to £94m.
The social cost of streets that our children are unable to move safely around is perhaps less tangible. Our children are becoming less active and levels of childhood obesity, with their associated physiological issues, have reached epidemic levels.
In just a few decades, we have created cities and towns that discourage activity and penalise our future generations by restricting them to the house and removing their instinct to explore and develop their independence.
As both a parent and a transport professional, I see the introduction of the national 20mph speed limit as a turning point. On its own, it may be a relatively small step in rethinking our towns and cities, but small steps are a good place to start and the more small feet we can encourage onto our streets, the better our streets will be for us all.
The Senedd has voted to replace 30mph with 20mph as the mandatory speed limit in residential areas across Wales. Sustrans believes this will help to create healthier places and happier lives for everyone.
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