Road safety campaigner speaks out at Oswestry 20s Plenty meeting
Dropping speed limits to 20mph would have a dramatic effect on road safety, a meeting was told.
Road safety campaigner Rod King visited Oswestry to add his support to calls for a blanket 20mph speed limit in the town's residential areas.
Mr King was the guest speaker at the 20's Plenty for Oswestry meeting, held last night at The Dining Rooms, Oswestry.
The meeting, which was also attended by West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner Bill Longmore, town councillors, local police and residents, was organised by Sarah-Charlotte Peace who has been campaigning for safer roads since she was badly injured in a road traffic collision while cycling in the town last year.
Mr King, who is the founder of 20's Plenty, told the 40 people who attended that campaigns in other parts of the UK had taken three years from conception for a new speed limit to be introduced.
"It's not seen as such a controversial issue any more," he said.
"The problem we have is that people are used to 30mph, but if they get used to 20mph then 30mph will seem faster."
The campaign has also been backed by local police, and Mr King said that working together is an essential part of improving road safety.
He said: "The 20mph limit isn't something that fixes everything, but it is a great foundation. Everything else you do then is going to have a better effect. It's no use teaching children how to cross the road if their parents are to frightened to let them cross the road and it's the same for the elderly if they are too scared to cross the road.
"The limit also needs enforcing and police are getting more powers to be able to send people on speed awareness courses rather than just issuing fines."
Constable Mike Moth from Oswestry Police said he supported the campaign both in a professional and personal capacity.
"From a police perspective we want to do anything we can to make the roads safer," he said. "How could you not back it? Personally, I'm a father with young children so I would support anything that can be done to make our roads safer."
