Elections
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Question 6 - we asked:
Lowering the speed at which vehicles are driven is one way of making road users safer. Do you agree and what would you do to encourage lower speeds?
We asked this question:
3 of the 4 candidates (75%) who were asked this question responded as below.
Those candidate(s) which were elected are highlighted.
Darryl PRESTON (Conservative Party) |
Safer roads 36 people were killed on Cambridgeshire and Peterborough roads in 2019 and nearly 400 seriously injured.* Having had to deal with fatal road collisions when I was a police officer, I am acutely aware of the devastating impact this has on families, friends and local communities. Indeed, I dealt with far too many serious injury and fatal incidents on our roads – and having to deliver that message to loved ones was, for me, the hardest job in policing. They used to be called road traffic accidents – but of course most are not: they are avoidable by all of us taking personal responsibility and driving safely. Please see my article Speed is a choice – why Road Safety Week matters for some ideas on how to drive within the speed limit. Partnership working is the key to tackling speeding and road fatalities I fully support the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Road Safety Partnership's radical Vision Zero Partnership, launched last July, to reduce deaths and serious injury on our roads in the next twenty years. It is clear we need better preventative actions. We need to be more data lead and utilise the information we collate from accidents to inform our decisions. At the same time, we need to continue surveying our roads, making sure they are safe through technical solutions such as speed reduction and better road design. I know that Cambridgeshire County Council and Peterborough City Council are working very hard on this. They have my full support and I am determined to make sure we achieve zero deaths and serious injuries by 2040. Listening to local concerns Not only will I be working with all the partners involved in this initiative but I will also be listening to what residents have to say. People know their communities better than anyone and I will put forward their ideas: Campaigns to reduce speeding, dangerous and drink/drugs driving. Road safety really matters to me My plan if elected, is 1. Lead and support the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Road Safety Partnership. 2. Ensure more police officers are on our streets – making resources available to the Chief Constable to increase the numbers of road policing officers along with more local police officers to deter and enforce the law. 3. Drive the use of innovative technology, data analysis and artificial intelligence to prevent accidents from happening. 4. Listen to local communities and support local campaigns to reduce speeding and dangerous parking. I will work with local authorities to make funds available for preventative local solutions such as traffic calming where appropriate. 5. Support the lowering of speed limits in residential areas but also in between villages where there is a good case to do so and is supported by local residents. 6. Progress the Vision Zero initiative by putting in place a clear plan and strategy. |
Nicky MASSEY (Labour Party) |
I do support 20 Mile Per Hour (MPH) is plenty campaign and that of the Louis Thorold Foundation, to lower the speed limits of all roads around our urban areas to 20 miles MPH. The lower the speed the lower the risk of serious injury. Average speed cameras and speed enforcement cameras can help towards lowering speed, in 2019 there was a 22% reduction in collisions at camera sites. However the real key is road design. We shouldn’t have roads that need policing speed enforcement because they have been designed as race track! Our police officers need to focus on the most serious crimes including dangerous driving and not on speed enforcement. We need serious consideration on road design from the new roads that are being built to looking at existing roads. We already know that by changing the feel of a road through street furniture, small changes like chicanes, road colour and texture and signage - we can change the speed of a road and therefore making it safer for all roads users. In 2010 Sustrans the transport charity worked on a pilot project where residents could fundraise and work to help make changes to their roads to slow down traffic. The end result was brilliant partnership work with the community! It as well as the impact of the COVID19 road changes that have been quickly implemented, shows that road change layout doesn’t have to be costly.
We need to do what we can to move people our of cars that are damaging our environments and onto sustainable transport such as public transport , cycling and walking. Cyclist’s need help in making sure that the safe pass is actively campaigned on, better signage and better cycle lanes can help. |
Rupert MOSS-ECCARDT (Liberal Democrat) |
Clearly lowering speeds reduce the likelihood of collisions and also the effect of those collisions. Traffic calming does have a part to play but I prefer a rather broader approach - creating a roadscape that is naturally calm. Humps and chicanes can sometimes be counter-productive; those with a long memory may recall the early Cherry Hinton scheme which resulted in "competitive" racing. |
Camcycle is a non-partisan body. All candidates are given an equal opportunity to submit their views. Information published by Camcycle (Cambridge Cycling Campaign), The Bike Depot, 140 Cowley Road, Cambridge, CB4 0DL.