Decision to introduce 20 mph speed limits in Oxford widely welcomed

11.01.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sat 25th Apr 2009

Following extensive consultation lasting several months, the county council cabinet member for transport has made a decision on behalf of the council to introduce 20 mph speed limits on most roads inside the city limits. The decision makes Oxford only the second city in Britain (after Lib Dem-run Portsmouth) to introduce the lower speed limit on a such a wide scale.

Lib Dems on both Oxford City Council and Oxfordshire County Council have been among the leading supporters of the campaign to reduce speeds on roads in residential areas, to minimise vehicle accidents and injuries.

Said Cllr Alan Armitage, who represents an area of the city which already contains a 20 mph zone:"The focus now must be on how best to manage the signing and enforcement. Unfortunately national police policies are against using their resources to monitor and enforce 20 mph speed limits, but locally there may be some flexibility. Residents in my area are still worried about the small minority of drivers who endanger the lives of children and other pedestrians in the residential areas."

The use of roundels painted onto road surfaces is also widely supported, rather than relying just on small roadside speed signs. Roundels have been successfully used in Oxford in the Cowley Road 20 mph zone. Where police have taken enforcement action against drivers exceeding the 20 mph speed limit elsewhere, people often claim that they were not aware that they were in a 20 mph zone. These excuses need to be eliminated.