CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Infrastructure

Speed limits

(18 posts)
  • Started 7 years ago by adamthekiwi
  • Latest reply from chdot

  1. adamthekiwi
    Member

    Hey all,

    I live in the colonies off Lochend Road (technically, I think we're called Restalrig Park) - this is a cul-de-sac with a central spine road, cobbled, single lane with parking on one side and the terraces coming off at right angles. It's wide enough to (carefully) drive a car, or even a transit van, down without mounting the pavement - but most folk can't be bothered with that and so just drive along the pavement. The first two terraces are served by only a path, so pedestrians come out from the north side with no visibility onto a pavement that can be occupied by a moving vehicle - I'm astounded that no-one has been hit.

    Since the move to the 20mph limit, the council has put 20mph signs (*loads* of them - one on every lamppost) down the colonies. This has served to *significantly* increase the speeds that folk travel down the pavement. In fact, last Saturday, while trimming the hedge, I had a confrontation with a driver who was barrelling down on the pavement - I motioned for him to slow down (without expletive or rude gesture) and he stopped and started shouting at me for having the temerity to do this. His reasoning was to point to the 20mph sign and say that this was his limit (he also, charmingly, informed me that if I tried to suggest he should slow down again he would "f**king run [me] down").

    What is the process for requesting a lower speed limit here? I know (second hand) from the local facebook page that there is some support for this. Is there any realistic chance of getting this considered before the sun goes red giant and wipes life from the face of the earth? Is there any hope of getting any support from the police?

    Posted 7 years ago #

  2. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    he also, charmingly, informed me that if I tried to suggest he should slow down again he would "f**king run [me] down

    I would be telling the police about that.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  3. neddie
    Member

    If you mean Woodville Tce, those streets weren't designed for today's "obese" motor cars.

    I'd say the solution is to make the entire area car-free. Much like the Dalry Colonies. Well, at least, they are supposed to be - note the image is full of vans and other assorted motors, despite "No motor vehicles" signage.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  4. dougal
    Member

    @nedd1e_h - I had never noticed that no vehicles sign before! I pass there twice a week at least and it is always occupied by a car, or with cars parked at the top of the hill, this side of the bollards.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  5. neddie
    Member

    @dougal

    See also the second half of this post:
    http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3748&page=221#post-257386

    Posted 7 years ago #

  6. Frenchy
    Member

    Speaking to councillors is the obvious (but not necessarily the best) first step.

    You have four councillors, of different political persuasions:

    http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/councillors/specificWard/14/craigentinnyduddingston

    I would suggest that any of them would be able to help here, but Cllr McLellan is possibly likely to view the solution as getting rid of 20mph streets altogether...

    Posted 7 years ago #

  7. crowriver
    Member

    Thankfully the situation in the Abbeyhill colonies is a bit more civilised. Folk drive very slowly as the streets are so narrow, and no passing room as they are usually fully parked up. The one exception is Alva Place/Maryfield Place, the only street which is not a cul-de-sac, and a notorious rat run which has only been saved from motors barrelling down it (one way) by the new "gyratory" on London Road which makes the rat run useless.

    I intend to try and drum up support to get through traffic banned from Alva Place/Maryfield Place: bollards would be good as at least cyclist could then pass through in both directions. This would also make the western end of Rossie Place much safer for cycling and pedestrians due to reduction in idiot drivers accelerating for 50 yards at full throttle before screeching to a halt at the normally congested Easter Road.

    As to speed limits, I have noted with pleasure that most drivers on Regent Road are observing the 20mph limit, save for the odd knob end in a Beemer or an errant taxi or three. Montrose Terrace is an entirely different story however: despite being 20mph and clearly marked, drivers treat it as an extension of the London Road 30mph limit and thus speed up it until they finally realise there's a 20mph limit somewhere on Regent Road. There's something about wide, straight roads like this that seems to set oiff a Pavlovian "Vroom, vroom!" reaction in many drivers' minds...

    Posted 7 years ago #

  8. Klaxon
    Member

    Speed is largely a function of either road design or enforcement, and not whatever circled number happens to be up on the poles.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  9. ih
    Member

    Chicanes! That is only a slightly sarcastic response. It would be interesting to see the vehicular reaction if chicanes were set up along the spine road that allowed pedestrians full access to the pavements, but effectively prevented motor vehicles from mounting and driving along the pavements. It would also reduce speed and remove some parking.

    The Dalry colonies look as though they were actually trying to achieve this, with planters, seats etc. I think this approach is probably the most feasible. It will take a long time though.

    Driving on pavements is illegal full stop, not the legal grey area that parking on pavements is, so there ought in theory to be a legal remedy. Personally, I think the issue is pavement driving, rather than reducing the speed limit. If you could get a Dalry style layout, it might be an option to push for a slower limit for the pedestrianised scheme.

    If you sense support from Facebook posts, you could contact Councillors and police, but prepare for a backlash.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  10. fimm
    Member

    If you have a local community council, complain to that.
    Complain to the police; especially if they have some kind of thing for getting local issues that local people are concerned about.
    See "cycling on Portobello Prom" as an example of what can happen if a few noisy locals make a noise about stuff like this.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  11. adamthekiwi
    Member

    [quote]he also, charmingly, informed me that if I tried to suggest he should slow down again he would "f**king run [me] down

    I would be telling the police about that.[/quote]

    Honestly, I don't think it would be worth it. I've some run-ins with him before - he's an angry young man. I don't think that involving the police (I know that what he did is, technically, assault) would improve his behaviour or my (or anyone else in the colonies) life. He is, though, fundamentally all mouth and nae britches...

    Posted 7 years ago #

  12. adamthekiwi
    Member

    @fimm: I'll give the community council a try. I don't hold out much hope, having sat on one of their meetings...

    Posted 7 years ago #

  13. rbrtwtmn
    Member

    From what I see on Google Streetview it is only convention which has people parked along one side of the road and not the other. With the chicane idea in mind, what about persuading neighbours that the parking should be varied from one side to the other at the pathways. People would have to slow down at those points. Borrow some parking cones from somewhere to get it established - or get some simple signs made up on that plastic stuff.
    Would only work if your neighbours agreed - but simple to implement if they did.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  14. chdot
    Admin

    Posted 7 years ago #

  15. teddybears
    Member

    As I understand it, the Council does not have the powers to introduce a speed limit lower than 20mph.

    Of course you could have explained to the car driver than 20 is a maximum limit and everyone should be driving taking in to account the prevailing conditions at the time.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  16. Murun Buchstansangur
    Member

    Personally I think requesting the council to place bollards on the pavement corners and at the end of the paths would be best. The additional proximity to hard metal things rather than squishy organic things would, sadly, be more likely to slow bad drivers down, and they would prevent the pavement driving altogether.

    Only caveat is they would need to be sunk to a good depth as I see bollard sites all over the city sans bollard due to either rubbish driving or vandalism.

    Posted 7 years ago #

  17. Snowy
    Member

    @chdot Impressive, where was this taken? Two attempts at sentences, one which is ambiguous, and one which isn't even a sentence and is misspelled...

    @Murun The bollards on pavement corners on the south side have had a hard time over the last couple of years - I reported an uprooted one 10 yards from a school gate but did CEC fix it? Nope, removed it and dumped a splodge of tar in the hole, coz, safety...

    Posted 7 years ago #

  18. chdot
    Admin

    @Snowy

    Kirkcaldy sorting office.

    Posted 7 years ago #

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