Towards 30km/h speed limits
Cities' interest to introduce a general maximum speed limit of 30 km/h in all built-up areas is continuously growing. Many CIVITAS are pioneers and are delighted to show the way. At a one-day conference in Brussels in May 2012, mobility experts and policy makers from Belgian and other European cities with a long tradition in the 30km/h speed limit gathered.
The aim of the conference was to share experciences and discuss the main drivers, pro's and con's, opportunities and needed infrastructure investments to realise 30km/h zones. Why this speed limit? An analysis from more than 30 studies comparing the traffic situation before and after the introduction of speed limit of 30 km/h shows that the number of accidents with injuries was reduced with 25 percent. For severe and deathly accidents this reduction runs up till more than 40 percent! In almost half of all traffic accidents, a pedestrian, biker of motor cyclist is involved. In zones with low speed limits however, weak road users regain their place on the public road and run less risk. While the risk on a deathly accident for a pedestrian in a zone 30 is very low, from 1 percent to 3 percent, this risk is much higher – up to 10 percent or five times more - in case of a collision at a speed of 50 km/h. The introduction of a zone 30 is also an advantage for all car passengers, as figures from a London study showcase. Last but not least, the introduction of a zone 30 has a positive effect on the air quality and the general quality of living iof cities. The European Parliament adopted therefore in 2011 a resolution which promotes the general introduction of zones 30 in residential areas, explained MEP Michael Cramer. Car accidents are the most important cause of death for EUcitizens younger than 50 and one third is due to excessive speed. Are road infrastructure needed when installing a zone 30? Speed limiting infrastructure elements do garantee lower speeds. A study from BIVV reveals that 93 percent of car drivers exceed the 30 limit in school areas without specific provisions. 70 percent of them drives at more than 40 km/h. The Dutch examples, presented by Hillie Talens (CROW) demonstrate that it is better to have a bigger zone 30 with (temporary) less provisions than the concentration of many speed limiting provisions in a small zone. The reduction of the average speed with some kilometres/hour in the entire built-up area is more effecrive than a strong reduction in just a couple of streets. The traffic situation should be anyhow evaluated regularly by the local authorities. Are speed controls needed? Regular controls are indispensable but can be (temporarily) compensated by other meaures regarding communication and control. Walter Dillen (Police of Antwerp) explained that speed controls by radars can be very difficult in practice because of technical limitations and that alternatives have to be designed to maintain the proposed speed limits. Letty Aerts (SWOV) proposed the potential of ISA technology in combination with infrastructure provisions to reduce speed. Conclusion Speed limits are one of the most important measures to improve the objective and subjective security in city centres. The realisation of zones 30 will be therefore inevitable due to its positive effect on the quality of living …. The cities of Graz (CIVITAS Catalist), Metz and Paris showed that a participatory approach, a well thought planning process and extensive communication add to the succesfull introduction and acceptance of a zone 30 by all stakeholders. The Belgian cities Ghent (Civitas PLus) , Brussels and Louvain-la-Neuve shared as well their lessons learned. The city of Bordeaux presented the manifest of the new network, villes à 30, which strives at a speed limit of 30 in all European cities. More on www.ville30.org.
Author: Els van den Broeck
