Testing your speed in Springhead

Reporter: Ken Bennett
Date published: 15 September 2020


Two speed and volume tests are to be run at Cooper Street in Springhead, after growing concerns from residents about a combination of high speeds and heavy traffic at school times.

Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani has arranged the surveys and a study of the traffic in normal times.

He said: “While there is a difference in traffic levels because of coronavirus, that doesn’t necessarily affect the speed of travelling. 

"If there are fewer cars on the streets, there is likely to be an increased chance of them speeding.

“The two speed checks will be done on Cooper Street in the next few weeks.

“We’ll be returning sometime – hopefully early next year – to look at how this changes once volumes return to normal, and when the schools have stopped staggered start times, so that we can compare the impact that this has.”

One major issue is Government rules mean average speeds are used to calculate whether speed restrictions are needed, and Cooper Street seems a classic case of where this could be misleading.

At school times, traffic speeds drop to a crawl, pulling down the average speeds across the day dramatically.

Mr Al-Hamdani added: “I’m going to go through the data thoroughly, and if that’s what happens here, then I’ll be campaigning at the highest level to get this changed.

"If the Department of Transport can’t see the problem that these rules cause, then I’ll be letting them know loud and clear.”


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