From time to time In the Cove is contacted by local residents expressing concern about cars speeding along their street. They would like the speed limit in their street lowered.
Lately, we have had quite a few people tell us about Kenneth Street Longueville. The road is wide and straight, and this has resulted in cars speeding along the road. One incident resulted in a car slamming into a fence after failing to stop at a T intersection. Residents believe the speed limit should be lowered to 40km/hour.
40km/hour
In 2017 Transport for NSW commissioned a report on the benefit of introducing a 40km/hr speed limit.
The report included the following recommendation.
“While safety benefits have been the most significant effects reported by practitioners and stakeholders, their comments support the published evidence that lower speeds, particularly in association with attractive roadside spaces, have a positive impact on amenity and walkability.”
Cities around the world and Australia are looking to reduce speed limits.
Transport for NSW is currently approaching local Sydney councils to discuss reducing speed limits to in pedestrian-motorist zones and40km/h in high pedestrian zones.
The Sydney Morning Herald spoke to Raphael Grzebieta, emeritus professor in the Transport and Road Safety Research Centre at the University of NSW. Professor Grzebieta said Australia’s “default” speed limit should be lowered to 40km/h.
“Suburban streets where people walk and cycle and our children play, and where lighting is often poor, 40km/h is the highest it should be,” he said.
Professor Grzebieta said a higher speed limit of 50-60km/h may be suitable for arterial roads with good visibility and few pedestrians and cyclists.
“However we must be mindful that a pedestrian or cyclist being struck at 60km/h is essentially a death sentence for them,” he said.
Kenneth Street Longueville
There is a 40 km/per hour zone along Longueville Road near the Pedestrian crossing on Longueville Road, and this makes sense due to the high number of pedestrians.
Kenneth Street Longueville is a busy pedestrian road. Dog owners walk along Kenneth Street to access Kingsford Smith Oval. It is also home to
- A sporting complex (Lane Cove Tennis Club)
- The Longueville Sporting Club
- The Longueville Hospital
- Central Park
- St Andrews Uniting Church
There are also numerous other streets which are used for rat-running, which increase traffic flow – for example, Karilla Avenue Lane Cove North.
Which Lane Cove Streets do you think should have the speed limit lowered?
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