Residents living on one street had been campaigning for 25 years because drivers were using the road as a cut-through
Speed reductions to 20mph are planned for a number of streets (file image)(Image: Getty Images)
Most of Leicester’s neighbourhoods could become 20mph zones by the end of this year, council leaders say.
Leicester City Council is aiming to introduce the traffic measures across 80 per cent of residential roads, in a scheme cabinet members say has proved popular with residents.
The project, which has already seen many areas changed in recent years, is intended to improve road safety, reduce speeding and discourage drivers from using residential streets as shortcuts.
Assistant City Mayor for environment and transport, Councillor Geoff Whittle (Labour), said: “There’s concern about road safety and we’ve made a commitment to put the resource in and set ourselves a target to strive for. We don’t want to just meander along.
“It’s not something we’re imposing on people. The public are demanding it of us really. All over the city, people are asking for this.”
Councillor Geoff Whittle (Labour), Assistant City Mayor for Environment and Transport(Image: Leicester City Council )
Councillor Whittle said the council believes it will hit its 80 per cent target for residential streets by the end of 2026. He added that the scheme does not apply to Leicester’s main arterial routes and A-roads, where traffic needs to continue flowing freely.
The council says it has consulted around 60,000 households, as well as businesses and schools, with an average approval rating of 83 per cent.
On Guildford Road, residents had reportedly campaigned for traffic calming measures for around 25 years because drivers were using the road as a cut-through.
However, the wider scheme has not come without criticism.
In Braunstone South, where measures were introduced earlier this year, residents previously told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that speed cushions had caused problems for neighbours with spinal injuries.
Councillor Whittle said he was “sympathetic” to those concerns.
He said national figures suggest average speeds fall by around 2mph when 20mph signs are introduced, while roads with speed bumps can see reductions of between 5mph and 7mph.
The latest roads set to become part of a 20mph zone were announced on May 13 and centre around the Mellor Primary School area.