Ernie Clark. Hilperton Division, Wiltshire Council.

Consultation to start in Autumn.

As required by Government, all Highway Authorities are reviewing the speed limits on A and B Class roads to ensure these are applied consistently and appropriately.

The background and concepts will be reviewed at the Area Boards and Town and Parish Councils will be given the proposed changes in the Autumn. There will then be a period of 8 weeks during which comments can be submitted. The aim is to implement all the changes by 2011.

There is a huge demand from communities to deal with various concerns in relation to speeding vehicles travelling through villages and towns. Wiltshire Council constantly monitors accidents and works with the Police Authority and other agencies to deal with speed related issues. This involves a whole range of techniques from education of drivers and pedestrians, enforcement of speed limits and carrying out works on the highways.

The aim is now to delegate the decision for prioritising the locations for monitoring speeds and for intervention to resolve any problems to Area Boards. This is a significant shift in the way public concerns are dealt with. Wiltshire Council officers are developing processes that would enable the Area Boards to make the decisions regarding speed related priorities.

It is hoped to be able to delegate this matter to Area Boards in the Autumn of this year. The following document, which outlines Wiltshire Council's Strategy on the setting of speed limits, might be of interest click here for info.