New limits will challenge the need for speed
TEN miles per hour. A small number for Formula One fans and jet pilots, a big deal in Guernsey.
The last time the speed limit for island roads was reviewed the proposals came under concerted attack and were eventually abandoned. Islanders value their cars and many did not relish the prospect of more sub-35mph roads.
This time could be different. The safety, noise and pollution arguments will play out strongly and the committee has approached the task with a more targeted plan prefaced by consultation.
That does not mean it will be accepted without a fuss. Far from it. It is not difficult to find anomalies in the new speed limits which can be challenged.
But then, drivers accept the current speed limits and they too are riddled with inconsistencies. Most have been in place for so long that motorists adjust their speed on autopilot and do not question why one road warrants a faster limit than another.
The tricky part of setting new limits is to take account of all the relevant factors.
It is not just road width that counts. Some larger roads are dangerous because they carry lots of traffic, or have no pavement, or have a series of twists and turns and pinchpoints.
Other smaller roads may have few junctions, steer clear of built-up housing areas and come nowhere near a school or park.
The truth is that motorists often travel at the speed of the cavalcade in front of them, not at the speed at which they would like to drive. Congestion is its own limiter.
Where the new limits will look odd is at night or early morning when traffic is scarce and 35mph (or faster) would seem perfectly safe.
La Route du Braye, for example, varies hugely.
On early mornings and late evenings it is a large, mostly straight, road where many drivers would feel safe at 35mph.
By day it is a snarling mess of trucks and cars with pedestrians having to be wary of pavement surfers and wing mirrors.
Intriguingly, this plan is Phase 1. With a few exceptions, what is proposed is fairly uncontroversial: small roads in built-up areas and near schools would benefit from lower speeds.
Phase 2 may not get such an easy ride.