Plans for 20mph zones in Barrow halted due to a lack of support
A decision on the works programme has also been delayed until April
The brakes have been put on plans for new 20mph signs in Barrow due to a lack of support for the proposals.
Members of Furness Locality Board for Westmorland and Furness Council voted in favour of not progressing plans at this time to introduce 20mph schemes in Hawcoat, Newbarns, Ormsgill,Roosecote, and north Walney following a consultation on the proposals.
A decision on the works programme for the 20mph speed limit scheme has also been delayed until April to allow revised options to be considered.
In April 2024 the locality board agreed to progress plans for the development of 20mph zones in Barrow however a public consultation on the proposals received a ‘very low’ number of responses, a report prepared for a meeting states.
The report adds a ‘significant proportion’ of the responses received were not in favour of the schemes as consulted.
According to the public consultation on the five proposed 20mph zones, the council received 783 responses after sending out 10,561 leaflets to properties.
Figures show 58.5 per cent of respondents did not want a 20mph scheme in their area to be implemented.
In response to the consultation, Councillor Niyall Phillips (Hawcoat and Newbarns, Conservative) said:
“We’ve got to do our best to listen to the responses that people gave. I do wonder whether this is perhaps a consequence of the fact that what we’re proposing is actually road signs, rather than proper speed control measures.
“And if we were to perhaps be proposing something such as speed bumps outside schools, visual signs which record speed outside every school across the locality board, when we look at the response we got, they would’ve supported those measures, I guarantee.”
"This needs to go further than just a few signs"
Councillor Ben Shirley (Dalton North, Conservative) said:
“This is something which is straight out the association of the Lib-Dem councillors handbook, and it’s not meaningful enough, as Niyall has said, for residents.
“This needs to go further than just a few signs that say this is now a 20mph zone.”
The council say 20mph speed limits need a ‘demonstrable’ level of support for a scheme by the local community before they are implemented.
At the meeting, a council officer said: “We are trying to look for more appropriate proposals for Barrow but this policy is a sign-only one so we’ll need to consider how we can complement that, if we do take it forward, with additional measures as we’ve suggested.”
The 20mph speed limit policy and implementation was a priority set out by the council to make a commitment to be at the ‘forefront’ of tackling climate changes and the challenges it presents, the report states.
The report adds: “20mph speed limits are important in supporting local communities and through the Council Plan, aims to promote lower vehicle speeds.
“The main aims are to promote safer roads, reduce congestion, reduce vehicle pollution, enhance the environment for walking and cycling, and support the community having a sense of place.”
Members of Furness Locality board decided to not progress the proposals on January 15 at Barrow Town Hall.
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