Traffic lights, kerbs and road signs could be removed from Black Country town centres - and replaced by a speed limit of as low as 10mph.
A pilot scheme is being considered for Aldridge in which motorists will be required to slow to a crawling pace to protect pedestrians. Based on the Dutch Woonerf system, it could be adopted all over the region if it proves successful.
Walsall Council is considering bringing in the system within the next two years.
Around 6,000 similar schemes are in place in Holland and statistics suggest they are playing an important role in cutting down on accidents.
The move would see a speed limit of between 10 and 20mph introduced and street furniture such as traffic lines, kerbs, signs and signals removed.
It would force motorists to take responsibility and consider other road users.
Councillor Anthony Harris, cabinet member for transport, says the idea is a concept in its early stages but sees Aldridge as a perfect town to apply the Dutch principle.
He said: “It is all about the motorist being responsible for their own actions.
“I am confident this can work. I think Aldridge has a perfect design to be incorporated into this.”
6 Comments
In 85% of all pedestrian accidents, the cause is by the pedestrian admitting they were walking/running out into moving traffic without looking. Pedestrians should be made responsible for their own safety in these open areas. These ideas should not be used to ban more drivers so that the government can further grovel to the EU econutters.
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4 Points to consider (1)The removal of traffic signs will make drivers concentrate on looking for their turn etc rather than look for the “pedestrian”, who steps off the pavement. (2) This should prove to be a particularly non-green decision in view of the increases in emmissions from vehicles both public and private operating at such speeds. (3) Policing such an action could prove interesting in view of most councils thought on speed cameras and the various controversies re who gets the cash, who pays the maintainence and who certifies the accuracy of the instrument with such a low speed tolerance. (4) who will deal with the number of cyclists who will break this limit with impunity ?
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you ask a taxi to do 10mph?
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If the council remove all parking restrictions then pedestrians will be very safe indeed as motorists will park all over the place and stop any traffic from moving at all.
Another wacky euro idea that just will not work due to the British psyche.
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Just a brief comment on what Bob said earlier.
There are no pavements as such. Pedestrians, cyclists and cars just move across an unmarked flat open space without assorted anti-car assault course objects. No-one has priority. But as normal, any problems and the car driver will always be at fault, an easy target for a cash cow.
The idea was also intended for Residential Zones only and to abuse the methodology in this way for a shopping area, it is bound to fail. But only after all the half-baked ecoconsultants and contractors have got full wallets at taxpayers expense.
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This is a superb idea which works very well in Holland. This is because Dutch people are rational, decent, fairly intelligent and law-abiding human beings. It’s unlikely to work in the Black Country, because its inhabitants have none of these qualities.
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