Perception of speed

I have blogged before about the increasing concern expressed by residents across the Borough about their perception of speed of traffic. In general this is worse in areas where pedestrian access is limited. In February of this year I wrote to the Chief Executive as Chair of CDRP and reminded him that as this matter was high on the list of concerns on the Crime and Disorder profile for Christchurch that we should start to take the matter seriously. This included revisiting the attitude to speed limits in vulnerable areas. I have also expressed my opinion time and time again in Council meeting that the current system designed for traffic levels far lower that those being experienced now should be reassessed and that we should not rely on the backstop of the 30mph limit. I take this matter very seriously as the CDRP is accountable and has to respond to indicators thrown up in the profiling undertaken by Dorset Police. As a result of my intervention and at the CE direction we now have a Borough wide process underway to highlight those areas of greatest concern with a view to introduce initiatives to alleviate the problem. I have not changed my view that if we want residents to be to be more dependant on sustainable transport such as cycling and expect them to rediscover the joys of walking then we must change our priorities from the concept of encouraging traffic flow on all our roads to one that prioritises for pedestrians and pedal power on those roads where they are vulnerable. I wanted to make this position clear because I find it offensive that some persons expressed the view that I have in any way changed my position due to outside pressure.