05:51PM, Tuesday 19 September 2023
The speed limit on a section of the A308 Windsor Road looks set to be reduced from 40mph to 30mph despite objections from Thames Valley Police.
Windsor and Maidenhead council held a meeting on Thursday to discuss proposals to lower the speed limit between Monkey Island Lane and the M4 motorway bridge.
Planning officers from the council had argued against the change due to fears over drivers ignoring the restrictions.
Thames Valley Police has also opposed the plan and warned a 30mph limit would ‘unduly criminalise’ a lot of people using the key road between Maidenhead and Windsor.
Andrew Cormie of the Holyport Residents Association and Bray Parish councillor, and councillor for Bray ward (The Borough First Independents), Suzanne Cross spoke on behalf of the proposals.
Cllr Cross said residents along the road were ‘afraid to leave their houses’ as pedestrians or cyclists (due to the speed of cars on the road) and there was ‘strong support’ for lowering the speed limit.
She also argued that the traffic data collected by planning officers had been carried out during the coronavirus lockdown and was therefore ‘out of date’.
Councillor Jodie Grove (The Borough First Independents, Datchet, Horton and Wraysbury) said the proposals ‘felt like a no-brainer’ and that she didn’t see any reason to keep the current limit.
Lib Dem councillor Gurch Singh (St Mary’s) also expressed support and raised an idea to ‘phase’ the speed limit to avoid a 30 to 50mph change at Monkey Island Lane.
Objections were raised by councillor Kashmir Singh (Liberal Democrat, Riverside) who pointed out police objected to additional traffic calming measures.
He also echoed the officer’s warning of a likely high-level of non-compliance with a lower limit.
In response Cllr Grove said there needed to be an element of trust in drivers to ‘do the right thing’ adding the existing speed-camera and presence of a speed watch group meant additional measures were not needed.
A total of eight councillors on the council’s place overview and scrutiny panel voted in favour of reducing the speed limit while Riverside councillor Kashmir Singh abstained.
The speed limit is set to be reviewed at a council Cabinet meeting on September 27.
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