Drivers 'very frustrated' by Ely 20mph blanket zone, claims council leader
A petition is calling for a review into the scheme
Drivers in Cambridgeshire are getting frustrated because of a 20mph zone, according to a council leader.
A petition - set up by Councillor Anna Bailey - is calling for the county council to "reconsider the locations for 20mph speed limits in Ely and to properly evidence its proposals."
The petition closes in 10 days' time and has received more than 2,700 signatures opposing the blanket scheme, installed after councillors voted to expand the speed limit to more parts of the city.
People 'very frustrated and overtaking on roads'
Cllr Bailey - leader of East Cambridgeshire District Council - said motorists are telling her their experiences driving in Ely.
"I'm getting reports of people being very frustrated by people driving close up to their bumpers and overtaking on roads in Ely, which overtaking is not appropriate but is happening because people are getting frustrated," she said.
"Once the review has happened and decided which areas really require a 20mph speed limit and where the evidence shows it improves the situation, I think that will be a relatively small number of areas, which means the rest of Ely would go back to a 30mph speed limit."
In the petition, Cllr Bailey said a consultation for the blanket 20mph zone "was poorly executed, and where thousands of people that stood to be affected were unaware of the proposal and wide community support was not demonstrated."
A consultation on the expansion, which ran between July and September last year, saw 122 people in favour with 65 against and 8 were neutral.
Blanket 20mph scheme 'shocking'
Cllr Bailey wants her petition to be debated at the county council's highways committee meeting next month, and believes a review into the scheme would allow the public to have their say.
"The idea is the scheme would go out to proper public consultation," she added.
"The most shocking thing about this is people were never given the opportunity to have a say because they did not know about the consultation."
Cambridgeshire County Council has previously said it uses 20mph limits "to reduce casualties, encourage active travel, reduce congestion, and air pollution.
"20mph schemes are introduced at local request working with the town or parish council as well as the local councillors and residents. For future schemes we will be undertaking both informal and statutory consultations in line with the new guidance.”