Guernsey Press

Slashing speeds could save lives

REGARDING the comments in Open Lines recently, I have the greatest respect for both Richard Brown and Dave Beausire, but I have to take issue with Dave Beausire’s comment in Friday’s Guernsey Press [‘Traffic strategy or social engineering?’] regarding ‘I have never seen all parties in the same room working together, motorists, cyclists, pedestrians bus users, taxis etc’.

Published

In 2003, the pedestrian safety charity Steps (now Living Streets) convened a Road Safety Week Committee which consisted of the three emergency services, Steps, GBG, Island Coachways, the Traffic Committee, the Child Action Prevention Group, schools, two insurance companies, Doyle Motors, CI Tyres and cycle retailers. The objective was to promote road safety during Road Safety Week. I chaired that committee and over the next five years we all worked in partnership during the week to highlight our specific concerns. The GMTA joined the committee later and in 2007 they highlighted the dangers of ‘pavement surfing’.

The review of the island’s speed limits was included in the Traffic Strategy brought to the States by Pat Mellor in 2002 and that strategy was passed by the States – so this proposal to reduce speeds on the approaches to local centres is long overdue.

Everyone is asking for evidence and I am sure that E&I has researched UK evidence where speed limits have been reduced. We cannot ignore the fact that research has shown that a pedestrian hit by a car travelling at 40mph has a nine out of 10 chance of dying, whereas at 20mph that pedestrian has a nine out of 10 chance of surviving.

In the Guernsey Facts and Figures booklet of 2008 under ‘Community Well Being’, excessive speeding was the number one concern of islanders on neighbourhood issues.

How many times have you heard islanders using the phrase, ‘it’s an accident waiting to happen’?

Surely we want our States members to be proactive rather than reactive?

Should we be waiting for someone to be killed or seriously injured (in order to provide evidence) before acting?

It’s what is referred to as the ‘body bag’ approach to road planning.

It’s what happens at the moment.

At last we have a proposal for putting in safety measures first so that residents living in, or near, these local centres feel safe walking to the shops, their surgery, to the bus stop, to post a letter or to access other facilities.

Given the demographics and the fact that we are all living longer, and concerns about the rising obesity levels, surely this makes sense?

PAT WISHER,

Maison du Rocher,

Rue de la Vallee,

Torteval, GY8 0PW.