Councillor turns down Hastings 20mph speed limit petition

On Wednesday (May 22), Cllr Claire Dowling, East Sussex County Council’s lead member for transport and environment, considered a petition — signed by more than 1,400 people — calling for 20mph to become the ‘default’ speed limit on residential streets in Hastings and St Leonards.

Speaking at the meeting, lead petitioner Amanda Jobson, a Green Party councillor on Hastings Borough Council, argued a lower speed limit would improve road safety and encourage more people to travel by means other than cars.

Cllr Jobson said: “Residents have complained about their residential roads being dangerous, unsafe to cross and live by. These roads are cut through roads without buses … but they have become unsafe with financial and health consequences — of broken wing mirrors, dead domestic pets, collisions, accidents — with more fear for those living in these hotspot roads.”

She added: “Safer routes are desperately needed along some residential roads and 20mph default speeds are investments for a community actively travelling. They can provide health benefits, allowing accessible safer roads.”

Cllr Jobson also disputed the description of the default speed limit as ‘a blanket measure’. Officers had used this term in recommending the petition’s aims not be implemented, as national guidance on setting local speed limits advises against such measures.

Cllr Jobson’s arguments saw support from Green county councillor Julia Hilton (also leader of Hastings Borough Council).

However, Labour’s Godfrey Daniel , who represents Braybrooke and Castle, added: “It’s a big petition … and a lot of people feel strongly about it. But there are also a lot of people who feel strongly about not going down this route.

“At the end of the day, if you want to change and put measures in, you have to look at how much it is going to cost and where the money is going to come from.”

He added: “As the report says, it is going to cost millions and I think most people in Hastings would actually prefer the money to be spent on making the roads safer in terms of the fabric of the road and the damage it does to cars and people when they hit potholes.”

Similar concerns were also raised by Conservative county councillor Peter Pragnell.

Ultimately, Cllr Dowling opted to turn down the petition’s calls. This decision was based on advice from officers, who said a default speed limit would neither be a ‘priority’ for the council nor ‘compliant with national guidance.’

In a report to Cllr Dowling, officers had said such a speed limit would affect around 190 miles of road in Hastings and St Leonards and would require traffic calming measures to be effective.