Stamford councillor critical of slow progress on new 20 mph zones for Lincolnshire
A campaigning councillor has shared his disappointment at the slow progress of changes that would give communities in Lincolnshire more power to request 20mph zones.
In December, Councillor Richard Cleaver (Independent) presented a motion at Lincolnshire County Council’s full meeting, aiming to empower communities to request such zones and make existing 20mph zones outside schools compulsory.
However, he feels that the council is "kicking the can down the road," after its highways and transport scrutiny committee failed to set a timetable for adopting a clear policy during its meeting on Monday (January 29).
"Given we had the motion pass through full council, I was expecting a far more positive attitude from the committee," said Coun Cleaver, who is also a member of Stamford Community Speedwatch.
The committee was presented with a review of the traffic management policy for Lincolnshire, but Coun Cleaver and other committee members pointed out that there was no mention of the motion in the report.
Councillor Phil Dilks (Independent), who attended Monday's meeting in Coun Cleaver's place, asked: "When are we going to see some action?"
He added: "We were effectively told in December, when we raised the issues, 'don’t worry, it’s going to be covered by the scrutiny panel next month'. It hasn’t been, it’s been kicked down the road."
Officers explained that the work in the report was completed before the motion was passed by the full council.
"A note has been taken, assurances have been provided that this will be considered in the future," said scrutiny officer Kiara Chatziioannou.
Richard Fenwick, head of highways asset and local management services, insisted that LCC would hopefully be "in a good position to action a sensible policy for the council," after "healthy discussions" were held about the changes implemented in Wales and elsewhere.
The statutory speed limit on Welsh restricted roads — those with streetlights no more than 200 yards apart — was reduced from 30mph to 20mph in September 2024.