Hebden Bridge News

20mph Zones Investigated Four Years After Labour Proposal

Town ward Labour councillor Megan Swift has given a cool welcome to an officers proposal which suggests that the Council should investigate creating 20 mph zones – four years after she and her Labour colleagues initially asked for the idea to be introduced in Calderdale.

Cllr Swift said, “In March 2006, I raised the issue of 20 mph zones outside schools and in residential areas, seeking support for the introduction of such zones in Calderdale.

“So I am pleased to see that, four years later, officers are now proposing that the idea should be investigated – and indeed that the proposal should be piloted in two areas – but I can only regret the lost opportunities to take this forward over the past four years.

“As the officer report states, concerns about traffic speeds and road safety are one of the largest and most common issues arising from Area and Ward forum meetings. But we did not need Area forums to tell us this – local councillors have been raising these concerns for years.

“It is also almost 12 months since the Government produced new guidance that gave local councils greater flexibility in introducing 20 mph speed zones.

“What the Labour group now want to see is a clear timetable for action; open and transparent criteria to identify the best locations for the two pilot schemes; a realistic period to test them out; and a commitment, if they are successful, to a rapid roll-out of the programme to other suitable areas across Calderdale.”