15mph City of London Speed Limit Proposal

The City of London is aiming to introduce a blanket speed limit of 15mph “citywide,” says a planning document to be discussed in a transport committee next month. The proposed measure is in order to save lives and reduce air pollution.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2021/09/28/15mph-speed-limit-to-be-introduced-across-london-by-2022-reveals-committee-planning-document/?sh=60b321b36c71

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Seems a bit ridiculous… First it was 20 to reduce emissions and save lives from crashes. Not that you can get to 15 most days in most roads in the city

Now are they making numbers up? I’m curious as to what data informed this… If any? Poor cars and bikes stuck in first gear…

Why not just pedestrianise the whole lot and get it over and done with?

Also article says interesting only mentions motor vehicles as it being applicable to, not cyclists…

Speed limits generally only apply to motor vehicles because it’s part of the road traffic regulations, there are exceptions like Richmond park where bicycles can be fined for speeding but I think that’s a separate byelaw.

Huh, I never knew that. Learn something new every day

I don’t think they can be done for speeding as cycles don’t have speedometers, they get done for the Victorian law of ‘furious cycling’. The Royal Parks have said the new 20 mph limit in the Regent’s Park does not apply to cyclists.

Personally I think the 15 mph limit makes sense. It is the speed e-assist bikes are limited to and if you’ve ever ridden an e-bike in London traffic you feel very vulnerable at its max speed because it just hits a wall and won’t go faster whereas on my other pedal bikes I can go faster for short bursts to complete a manoeuvre.

Either speed limits need to come down to e-bike limits, or e-bike limits need to be raised to 20 mph. We need to get more people onto e-bikes and bullying London traffic is one of the biggest barriers.

Having said all that, the City is a very small area and no one will really notice this change.

It might very well come to that in time. It is a small area.

This is getting ridiculous now. They might as well grow a pair of bollocks and ban all vehicles from central London.
Deliveries, building materials etc can be transported by railway, canal and hand carts.

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Isn’t that how ULEZ started. A small area that over time expands.

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Cyclists have been charged specifically with speeding in Richmond Park although there was some discussion at the time about how that would stand up to an appeal.
I believe that wanton and furious cycling is an offence against a person (ie you have to hit someone to be charged) but you could be charged with careless cycling or similar.

I’ve never cycled through The City and the couple of times that I’ve ridden a motorbike through there have not made me want to return by any mode of transport. I don’t think I’ve ridden in the square mile since I got my current bike 10 years ago.

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15mph in the City of London will make almost no difference to how it is now. I think it’s a blanket 20 zone but you’d struggle to do that during the day. Late at night would be frustrating for taxi drivers.

I thought the new 20 zones in Kensington and Chelsea would be frustrating but I don’t even notice now.

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Coincidentally The Royal Parks have clarified today that speed limits do not apply to cyclists. If you’ve been ticketed by them you now have a case for a refund.

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Interesting - I’ve seen the parks police out with speed guns pulling over cyclists as recently as a couple of months ago but no idea if it was to charge them or just for a warning.

A quick google suggests that either nobody has been charged recently or it is no longer considered newsworthy as the stories all seem to be 5+ years ago

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A Queen’s Counsel writes:

https://twitter.com/MartinPorter6/status/1443888717052121090

TFL’s already said they want there to be zero oil-fired vehicles in London. And also that they want private drivers to be the bottom of the priorities list, after pedestrians, cyclists, public transport etc.

Is this the same TFL that gave me a grant to buy a diesel van?

Politicians have been schizophrenic about diesel.

I just wish they’d think it through.

I think 20 mph is slow enough. My previous car’s (Honda Civic) slowest speed on cruise control was 27mph. My current car will do 20mph on cruise control, but I’m not sure what its lowest setting is. I’ll have to suss that out on my next drive. Trying to drive at 15mph without the use of c/control would be a massive trial of self-control.

Travelling to work along the A406 from Palmers Green to Bounds Green, the speed limit there is 30mph. However, most traffic, and I really do mean most, is usually travelling at much closer to 40mph, and it does look like a 40mph stretch of road. Riding along at 30 is probably pretty dangerous, as most drivers are coming up behind far too close. Maybe I’ll try riding that way tomorrow at exactly 30mph, just to see what happens. I think I’d better mount a backwards facing camera too though.

As a side line, my toy’s minimum speed is 11mph. First gear, with the throttle closed, it rolls along at 11mph.

Struth acemAn. I rode into the Bike Shed on Wednesday by way of Walthamstow, Leyton, Hackney Downs and the Kingsland Road and was it was restricted to 20 mph, with speed cameras, all the way. It’s been about 6 years since I rode the A406 but surely that’s a typo parts of the A406 restricted to 30 mph!

Yeah, the single-carriageway bit is 30mph

Now it comes to mind. The bit acemAn mentions is Telford Road/Bowes Road where the A406 takes a 90° turn and the bit BigRedS mentions is Hanger Lane/Gunnersbury Avenue leading to/from the Chiswick Roundabout.

The things that can slip your mind in such a short time.