20’s Plenty have written a guest blog updating us on their highlights for the coming year including the Mayoral Elections and their suggestions on responding to the CoYC Transport Consultation – the deadline for which is 4 February.

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We all want to get about safely and for no one to be killed or seriously injured on our roads. York Cycle Campaign now have a pro 20mph policy in line with 20’s Plenty for Us, the National Campaign for 20mph to be normal where people live, work, shop, play and learn – as Wales have done and Scotland and Ireland are doing. Arterials and rural roads in York, plus policing are where the focus is.

Due to the 2024 Mayoral elections 20’s Plenty for York and North Yorkshire are working together under Action Vision Zero to call for zero road deaths. Sign the petition online. 

The new Mayor will control £18M pa extra transport funds for seven years. It could be levered up to £345M of borrowing. Plus he’ll also be the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner. Road danger reduction activists are after Mayoral candidate pledges. Plus offering free zoom trainings. Do come to Thurs 4th Jan 7pm Jeremy Leach of London’s Action Vision Zero: How 20mph matters. 

Weds 17 Jan 7pm. 20mph campaigner media training  eg answer questions by stating your message first, how to record a campaign video. Pre-register here.

Our focus to Feb 4 is also to ask you to please reply to City of York Council York’s Transport Consultation.

CYC Policy idea 3.6 – Adopt the Vision Zero approach, seeking to eliminate all fatalities and serious injuries on York’s roads. Work with partners, such as North Yorkshire Police, and stakeholders to use the appropriate and Detailed Transport Policies proposed for consultation Annex A proportionate tools available to reach this goal. This work will include infrastructure design, behaviour change, technology, legislation and enforcement.

Reply: Yes to Vision Zero. VZ requires speed limit reduction & enforcement. Speed is key to crash impact: energy = ½ mass x velocity squared.  CYC Councillors can use powers to set default road speeds to the survivable default 20mph limit where motors mix with vulnerable road users. London saw 25% fewer Killed & Serious (KSI) injured on red route arterials at 20mph. Hit at 30mph, 56% of pedestrians are KSI (Dep. for Transport 2010. 30mph is unsafe. Add targets. Achieve VZ by 2030 & halve vulnerable KSI by 2027. Request HGV voluntary covenants, directional signing & weight limits to reduce the heaviest vehicles from mixing with vulnerable road users. 

CYC Policy idea 6.4 – To make travel safer for pedestrians, wheelers and cyclists, adopt 20mph as the default speed limit for all roads through residential areas (including new developments), near schools, in villages and at retail areas and parks.

Reply: Yes to 20mph as default -used wider for Vision Zero safety. The presence of people matters, not nearby facilities. Bodies don’t withstand 30mph impacts. Vision scientists proved children under 14 years cannot safely cross traffic over 20mph. Rail station frontage £25M scheme at 20mph Plus the majority/all main routes within outer ring road & rural lanes as a cycle network. England is mandated to UN and WHO best practice re the Stockholm Declaration: Focus on speed management, including the strengthening of law enforcement to prevent speeding and mandate a maximum road travel speed of 30 km/h (20mph) in areas where vulnerable road users and vehicles mix in a frequent and planned manner, except where strong evidence exists that higher speeds are safe, noting that efforts to reduce speed in general will have a beneficial impact on air quality and climate change as well as being vital to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries” City of York Councillors have speed setting powers. Use them!

CYC Policy idea 9.2 – carefully consider where greater enforcement of traffic offences could make a beneficial contribution to traffic management in York

Reply. The Mayor is also PFCC from May 2024.  The Mayor has devolution deal funds and can expand Dash Cam reporting (Operation Snap). This potentially makes traffic offences enforceable everywhere. The MET spent on back office updates to cope with up to 1M dash cam / fixed penalty notices pa. Also much greater parking enforcement of pavement and blocking cycle lane parking. Average speed cameras on key routes. Commit to ISA speed limiters on council vehicles and contracted or licenced council transport operators eg bus companies, school coaches and taxis. 

Also for traffic reduction – request a Workplace Parking Levy to reduce traffic and raise revenue. Individualised travel planning and traffic reduction education. Cutting car use is motivated wanting to save money, be healthy or be green in that order.  Drivers will have to pay more per use. Its fairer to ask those in work to pay than everyone. Pay per road use (congestion) charges were ruled out.

You can join Action Vision Zero York & N Yorks and 20’s Plenty for North Yorkshire on Facebook.

Watch the Whitby road safety activism video on YouTube.