Agenda item

At the Reigate & Banstead Local Committee held on 22September 2014, a petition was presented by Reigate Methodist Church requesting that the speed limit in Reigate High Street be reduced to 20mph. Speed limit assessments have been carried out on a number of roads within Reigate town centre, following the process set out in Surrey’s policy “Setting Local Speed Limits”. As a result of these assessments it is proposed that the existing 30mph speed limit, be reduced to a 20mph speed limit.

This report seeks approval for the change to the speed limit in accordance with Surrey’s policy.

The Local Committee (Reigate & Banstead) agreed:

 i.       To note the results of the speed assessments undertaken, shown in Table 1.

ii.       That, based upon the evidence, the speed limit be reduced from 30mph to 20mph on the following roads in Reigate town centre;

o   A25 Church Street, from the eastern property boundary of number 46 Church Street to its junction with the A217 Bell Street.

o   A25 High Street, from its junction with A217 Bell Street to a point 4m to the west of the junction with D1304 Park Lane.

o   A217 Bancroft Road, its entire length. 

o   A217 Bell Street, from its junction with A25 Church Street to the southern property boundary of 109B A217 Bell Street.

o   D131 Access from A217 Bell Street to Morrisons, from its junction with A217 Bell Street to end of the publicly maintained section of highway (a distance of 60m).

iii.       To authorise the advertisement of a notice in accordance with the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, the effect of which will be to implement the proposed speed limit change, revoke any existing traffic orders necessary to implement the change, and, subject to no objections being upheld, that the order be made;

iv.       To authorise delegation of authority to the Area Highway Manager in consultation with the Chairman, Vice-Chairman of the Local Committee and the local divisional member to resolve any objections received in connection with the proposal.

v.       To note that if the scheme has not been successful, then further engineering measures or a return to the original higher speed limit may be necessary.

Reason for Decisions:

The above decisions were made to enable the change in the speed limit from 30mph to 20mph, on the selected roads above within Reigate town centre in accordance with Surrey County Council’s Speed Limit Policy. 

Declarations of Interest: None

Officers Attending: Zena Curry, Area Highways Manager (AHM), SCC

Petitions, Public Questions and Statements: None

The AHM introduced the report, noting there was one amendment to make in the report in relation to the cost of the scheme. She explained the scheme had been piloted as part of the Active Travel measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. She added that an online consultation had remained open and this scheme had been popular with residents to be made permanent.

She stated that the report quoted the cost of £6,000 to permanently implement the scheme. She noted that this figure was the cost for the temporary scheme and the actual cost was £13,000. The increased cost came about as some permanent signs would need to be mounted on illuminated posts, which weren’t required temporarily.

Key points from the discussion:

·           The local divisional member stated she was in support of the scheme and that it was also supported by residents.

·           Some members raised concerns about the already poor air quality on Reigate High Street. They questioned whether any investigations had already taken place as it was known that lower speeds meant poorer air quality as more carbon was emitted.

·           It was noted that Reigate town centre was focussed on because it was already an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA). And that some data suggested lower speeds encouraged more cycling and walking by creating a better and safer environment for these users.

·           It was questioned whether the Police would enforce this lower speed limit and that perhaps money could be better spent elsewhere. It was confirmed that the was enforceable by the Police as it met with SCC’s setting speed limits policy.

·           The AHM confirmed that none of the costs for this scheme were to be met by Local Committee delegated budgets. The funding had been set aside from Emergency Active Travel Funding (AETF) for Reigate and was well supported by local residents and businesses in the online consultation.

Resolution:

The Local Committee (Reigate & Banstead) agreed:

 i.       To note the results of the speed assessments undertaken, shown in Table 1.

ii.       That, based upon the evidence, the speed limit be reduced from 30mph to 20mph on the following roads in Reigate town centre;

·         A25 Church Street, from the eastern property boundary of number 46 Church Street to its junction with the A217 Bell Street.

·         A25 High Street, from its junction with A217 Bell Street to a point 4m to the west of the junction with D1304 Park Lane.

·         A217 Bancroft Road, its entire length. 

·         A217 Bell Street, from its junction with A25 Church Street to the southern property boundary of 109B A217 Bell Street.

·         D131 Access from A217 Bell Street to Morrisons, from its junction with A217 Bell Street to end of the publicly maintained section of highway (a distance of 60m).

iii.       To authorise the advertisement of a notice in accordance with the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, the effect of which will be to implement the proposed speed limit change, revoke any existing traffic orders necessary to implement the change, and, subject to no objections being upheld, that the order be made;

iv.       To authorise delegation of authority to the Area Highway Manager in consultation with the Chairman, Vice-Chairman of the Local Committee and the local divisional member to resolve any objections received in connection with the proposal.

v.       To note that if the scheme has not been successful, then further engineering measures or a return to the original higher speed limit may be necessary.

Reason for Decisions:

The above decisions were made to enable the change in the speed limit from 30mph to 20mph, on the selected roads above within Reigate town centre in accordance with Surrey County Council’s Speed Limit Policy.