Fife Council, at its meeting last week, agreed a with Conservative Councillors Dave Dempsey and Robin Lawson that Fife’s approach to 20mph limits is basically sound and doesn’t require input from Government.
Cllr Dempsey said “It’s rumoured that the Scottish Government may issue councils with regulations concerning 20mph limits, notwithstanding the recent fiasco in Wales. We believe that Fife’s existing approach to speed limits works well and doesn’t require any fundamental changes. Lots of roads already have a 20mph limit and there’s a mechanism for changing speed limits where the evidence and local opinion backs that. We felt that now was the time to make this clear, so that the Council’s Transportation Service wouldn’t embark on an expensive and time consuming exercise to fix something that isn’t broken. With assistance from Cllrs Barratt and Glen, we were able to come to a form of words that the full Council accepted without debate.
Cllr Lawson said “The introduction of 20mph limits in Fife should be determined by local considerations, and is not a “one size fits all”. I am proud that fellow Ward Councillors and the Community Council have backed a town wide 20mph limit for St Andrews as it has a high proportion of students and visitors from abroad who are unfamiliar with our roads and narrow streets. Slower traffic speeds are much more pleasant and safer for the pedestrians and cyclists. The impending 20 mph limit is appropriate across all St Andrews but would not suit Glenrothes or other towns where the road system has been developed with vehicles in mind."