As part of Merton Council’s continuing efforts to increase road safety, 20’s Plenty schemes will be introduced into two additional areas in the borough.

The areas around Claremont Avenue and West Barnes Lane are next on the map to have their maximum speed limits reduced from 30mph to 20mph following a consultation with residents earlier this year.

The new speed limits will be introduced shortly and follow the decision to introduce similar speed restrictions in eight other areas around Merton last year.

The initiative aims to ensure that motorists keep to 20mph in these streets, since it has been shown that lower speeds reduce the number of accidents and collisions that occur in residential areas. It is hoped that lower speeds will also encourage more people to cycle or walk, improve the local environment and increase road safety for all road users, particularly the more vulnerable such as children and the elderly.

For more information on 20’s Plenty in Merton please visit http://www.merton.gov.uk/20splenty

Merton Council’s cabinet member for planning and traffic management, Councillor William Brierly said, “Lower speeds mean fewer and less serious accidents. I am therefore pleased we are able to take forward these latest Twenty’s Plenty schemes as part of our ongoing drive to make Merton’s roads safer. As well as improving safety for both residents and road users, we hope they will help ensure our residential areas are quieter and less polluted. In this way, more residents will hopefully be able to walk and cycle around the borough, knowing they can do so safely and comfortably.’

NOTES
Four further areas (Pollards Hill area, Edge Hill area, Eastfield Area and Abbotsbury Road) are being considered for implementation later this year after consultation with residents on their views about lowering the speed limit in their roads

The 20mph zones have features such as speed cushions, which are designed to encourage road users to automatically slow down. Speed limits are introduced without any physical alterations to roads where the average speeds is lower than 24mph.

The 20’s Plenty scheme was rolled out to the following areas during the last financial year:

Areas with the new 20mph speed limit include Trinity Road, Quicks Road, Ashbourne Road, Melrose Avenue, Merton Hall Road, Merton Park, Farm Road and Wandle Road.

Areas around Pelham Road, High Path, and Parkway are now 20mph zones.