New speed limit for the town

Tue 2 Jun 2020, 21:32

Hey ho - look forward to the legal challenges!

Tue 2 Jun 2020, 21:30 (last edited on Tue 2 Jun 2020, 21:32)

Interesting about the placement,  two new poles have gone in on Hixet Wood,  one of which is taking up valuable pavement space,  but is already obstructed by trees, so not much use.  One of the repeater signs on woodfield drive, although is on an existing pole, due to the poles placement on the 'higher' walkway , the sign is about 20-25 feet in the air compared to the actual road, the placement to me makes it look like the pavement has a speed limit and not the road 

Tue 2 Jun 2020, 20:54

In terms of placement, the county council have set out the locations & sites, without proliferating more poles with many "repeater" signs along the roads.  I guess they know what they're doing.

Tue 2 Jun 2020, 20:19

Out of interest, shouldn't the new signs actually be placed on or immediately adjacent to the public highway on the verge?

The picture in the News section seems to show the sign actually erected the 'wrong' side of the wall and within the allotments on the Enstone Road.

Could that end up in a legal challenge if someone was stopped for speeding at that location?

Tue 2 Jun 2020, 17:19

I see that the new speed limit signs are being erected around the town, hopefully this should slow some inconsiderate drivers, after all it's a maximum speed NOT a target speed. Thanks to all those concerned it getting this implemented 

Mon 20 Apr 2020, 10:44

Brian - sounds like a letter to the Coop might be in order then! Whenever I have been at the Coop any lorries delivering have come down the Enstone Road and reversed into the Spendlove car park entrance. I still stand by my comment though. Go and stand in Horsefair, Chipping Norton in normal times, then make the comparison.

Fri 17 Apr 2020, 13:08

Philip, you say 'Very large goods vehicles are rarely, if ever, seen in Charlbury'. I'm not sure what constitutes 'very large' in your mind but I can tell you that anything from 18 tonne, 2 axle rigids to 40 tonne artics are often seen on Dancers Hill & Pooles Lane - as I write this at 12.58, one has driven past heading to the Playing Close and who knows where?   Maybe the driver will discover that the tight corner at Browns Lane & parked cars will stop him making the turn and will, like many before him, have to reverse down to Sandford Rise to turn around.  What's more, it's not unusual for them to be heading to the Co-op. So please, don't tell us that such lorries are rarely if ever seen in Charlbury.

Thu 16 Apr 2020, 20:31 (last edited on Thu 16 Apr 2020, 20:36)

I disagree with HGV vehicles in Charlbury- The numbers of HGV vehicles has reduced entering Charlbury from station hill. This has been a much reported activity on the forum and the issue of the weight limit imposed and ignored . Often 5 or more in a day - pre lock down 

Thu 16 Apr 2020, 20:09

Very large goods vehicles are rarely, if ever, seen in Charlbury. The largest ones are those delivering to the Coop ( a local asset much valued during the current lockdown). Those vehicles tend to come down the Enstone Road and leave by the same route.

Most of Charlbury's roads affected by the new 20mph limit are those where the limit will be self-enforcing anyway. that is the intention with most of these schemes. Do not expect much Police presence or you will be disappointed. TVP resources are extremely limited these days.

Chipping Norton's 20mph limit is a fig leaf for a much needed by-pass (especially if the go-ahead for is given for 1200 houses to built on [guess what?] OCC owned land! At least Charlbury does not have that problem. The by-pass route past the Rollright Stones has been mooted for years, but involves three counties and three Government Economic Regions - SW, SE and Midlands. An ideal script for a new episode of Yes, Minister!

Thu 16 Apr 2020, 11:11

We've had the 20 zone for areas around the centre of Chipping Norton for about 6 months now, and although I realise it won't be rigidly policed in the early days (if at all), from my point of view, sadly, it's not yet made one bit of a difference!

Thu 16 Apr 2020, 11:08 (last edited on Thu 16 Apr 2020, 17:54)

Thank you to all concerned for this work.  The 20 mile limit won't, I think, deter very large goods vehicles and lorries of all shapes and sizes from using Market Street, they have to crawl along to navigate the parked cars and pedestrians and often mount the kerb to do so. Many times a day the room goes dark and at one time when this happened I looked up to see 50 or so happy tourists waving to me from their swanky coach! ......amusing story but.........

Thu 16 Apr 2020, 10:49

There is some evidence that shows 20 mph zones limit the volume of traffic, which would benefit the centre of Charlbury, epecially if it puts off large vehicles from going theough the centre of the town. I think this is because satnavs direct vehicles away from 20 mph zones. This would  make the town safer for cyclists and pedestrians, and would also benefit people who have to park their cars on our narrow streets, several of which  have been hit by wide vehicles (mine included).

Thu 16 Apr 2020, 10:37

I don’t think anyone expects it to be a silver bullet. Ultimately there are three ways to ‘fix’ speeding (physical traffic calming, blocking off through-routes, or tech solutions such as speed cameras) – they all work, but they’re all expensive and controversial. The 20mph limit is a good first step, and will make things better even though it won’t completely solve them.

The trend during lockdown seems to be “fewer cars, travelling faster” – it remains to be seen whether people’s appetite for working at home will continue after all this is over. Plus of course there are more home deliveries… and all that has a big impact on traffic and traffic speeds. Interesting times.

Wed 15 Apr 2020, 21:35

It’s so sad to see sweet local people putting so much afford and hope into this but I think it’s not going to solve much.

Wed 15 Apr 2020, 08:46

Yes, great news for Charlbury and welcomed by the Speedwatch Team who will be working with the Town Council to plan monitoring sessions to support the new limit.  Well done everyone involved.

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 23:35

Thanks Liz, hurrah!

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 18:05

Browns Lane and Pooles Lane are definitely included.

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 15:25

Well done to everyone who was involved in this campaign. It’s a great result, which will probably save lives or injuries over time. 

 I am just hoping that my assessment of ‘the centre of town’ includes Browns Lane and Pooles Lane, as they were not listed specifically.

Why are you sad, John Werner? 

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 14:21

Sad

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 11:39

Many thanks to you, Richard, and all those who helped to get the new speed limit approved- it should make a big difference to us when it comes into force.

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 10:19

I’m not sure we want to encourage zooming! (But yes, good idea.)

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 09:55

Yes Richard, Spelsbury Rd and other areas. How about a TC zoom meeting?

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 09:49 (last edited on Tue 14 Apr 2020, 10:21)

Thanks David – yes, this is the official date though it’ll only actually come into effect when the signs go up. This was meant to be in the week starting 20th April, but (understandably) Oxfordshire County Council’s sign contractors have shut down due to coronavirus, so it might end up being later this summer.

Onwards and upwards – next challenge is to focus on the other roads like Spelsbury Road and the Slade that need attention too!

Tue 14 Apr 2020, 09:30

Please be aware that the new 20mph limit discussed previously comes into effect on 20-April.