A 5 year collation of road accidents in a small section of Surrey, a county where few areas escape unblemished.
Surrey roads saw 9 billion vehicle miles per year prior to the pandemic, down to 7 billion in 2021 but still above average for the county’s size. An outcome of more roads, more cars per head and disposable wealth to pay for fuel.
In January 2022, Surrey County Council debated changing all town centres and residential roads to 20mph zones. Alongside reducing emissions, this would help to tackle an unnaceptable rate of serious injury and fatalities.
The proposal was however defeated, as signage alone is ineffective and traffic calming measures on the scale required would not be affordable. Neither did Surrey Police feel they could meet demands, on a change which is not generally self enforcing.
Alternative Approaches
A number of additional average speed cameras are being installed. They are expensive and do not return funds to the council in the normal way but have been proven to work. A study of 5 existing installations saw a reduction of 63% in road casualties.
The 20mph plan has not been completely set aside, 93 zones have been introduced since 2014 and more may follow. When sited in rational places, they tend to be kept to and can be part of encouraging cycle use.
Cycling instead of motoring is a clear way to reduce emissions and congestion but people need to feel they are safe. Cycle paths may help, although surveys by the University of Surrey suggest that local traffic speed is the primary concern.
Help to identify safer routes will assist, along with initiatives to encourage cycling. These have recently included linking cycling to train use, highlighting nearby areas to explore and offering free cycle checks at stations.
Rational Road Use
Surrey is unusual in the amount of carbon emissions coming from transport, along with a fairly high accident rate. We can all help by keeping to speed limits which are in place and thoughtful driving.
Our removals team drive for a living and are trained to take care, backed up by accurate route planning and timing. This helps our customers and for staff, relieves stress, an outcome we can all create for ourselves when driving our cars.
We will be pleased to help with removals in Surrey and continue to focus on an approach which improves air quality, saves money and importantly, saves lives.
