Rowen supports new bill to tackle road deaths

Date published: 05/03/2007

Rochdale MP Paul Rowen has joined his Liberal Democrat Transport Colleagues in proposing a law, which could reduce the number of road accidents in Britain’s cities by 60% and save thousands of lives every year.  By introducing a default 20mph speed limit on all lit roads in built-up areas, accident numbers could be slashed. The bill has received wide backing including from charities such as Brake and the UK National Cyclists’ Organisation, the CTC.

Paul Rowen said: "Every year more people die on our roads than the numbers who died on 11 September 2001, a fact that should shock us all.  Government research has shown that introducing 20mph speed limits could more than halve accidents on our streets.  Councils would be able to keep 30mph or 40mph limits on main or arterial routes.  With car use at an all-time high, this law is essential for protecting pedestrians, cyclist, motorists and everyone who uses our roads.  This may be slightly unpopular with motorists across Rochdale, but the fact of the matter is we need to take action to dramatically reduce the number of accidents on our roads.  This is a sensible idea and when motorists weigh up the pros and cons about this they will come to the same conclusion as us."

A spokersperson for the charity Brake said: "We fully support the Liberal Democrats in this bid to reduce the residential speed limit to 20mph. The UK’s pedestrian death rate is notoriously high - twice as high as some other Western European countries, so we need to take urgent and decisive action to protect vulnerable road users.  Lowering the residential limit by just 10mph could mean the difference between life and death for hundreds of people each year, and will make the streets a safer place for those who choose to walk and cycle."