News

Cut narrow street speed limit bid

A CANTERBURY Bankstown councillor has written to the State Government to back his calls for a 40km/h speed limit trial in some streets after his own council knocked back his requests.

Cr Glen Waud has asked the council on two occasions to support his calls for a trial of lower speed limits on some narrows streets – the first for a change to 30km/h and more recently to 40km/h – with both rejected by fellow councillors.
The Revesby Ward councillor said that with more and more people being squeezed into the area and many of them being forced to park on the road, the many narrow streets are only being made more dangerous to navigate.
“Local residents are concerned with speeding vehicles on our local roads, in particular those residing in our narrow streets,” he said.
“I have heard their concerns loudly and clearly.
“Trialling a 40km speed limit in some of our narrower local streets and having the police focus enforcement on those limits may not get all drivers to use more caution and slow down, but if there is just one or two less serious injuries or deaths each year, then isn’t it worth trying.
“We must ask ourselves the question: Given the changing face of our neighbourhoods, is a 50km/h speed limit low enough?”
Council’s Traffic Committee chairperson Cr Rachelle Harika says lowering the limit is not the answer.
“We need to be searching for innovative solutions, along with ongoing community awareness campaigns, as a way to address the issue of speeding motorists in our community,” she said.
“Lowering speed limits from 50km/h to 40 km/h will not slow down drivers who are already ignoring the higher speed limit.
“Punishing people who do not speed is not the solution, but the Liberal State Government needs to do its part and ensure that the right legislative framework is available for councils like ours to take the lead and implement speed reduction technology.”