Motorists face 60mph speed limit on motorways
By Steven Swinford, Senior Political Correspondent 10:00PM GMT 06 Jan 2014
Motorists face 60mph speed limit on some roads because of EU rules to limit air pollution
80mph speed limit plan for motorways
Britain's speed limits are lower than many other countries in Europe Photo: ALAMY
The motorway speed limit in some areas will be cut to 60mph under government plans to limit air pollution near homes and schools.
The Highways Agency on Monday announced that it is planning to reduce the limit on a 32-mile stretch of the M1, amid fears that pollution levels are damaging the health of nearby residents. The proposals are part of an attempt to meet European Union targets for clean air.
Officials will consider whether to expand the speed restriction across the country, with part of the M3 in Surrey and 13 other stretches of motorway singled out for the measure from 2015.
Motoring organisations criticised the plans and accused the Government of “penalising” drivers and reducing the national speed limit “by the back door”.
Britain has some of the lowest national limits in Europe, behind 24 other countries including Germany, where there is no speed limit on autobahns, France, Italy, Spain and Ireland.
The plans emerged after the Coalition abandoned proposals to raise the limit to 80mph, amid concerns it would alienate women voters and risk safety.
In 2011, Philip Hammond, the then transport secretary, promoted the plans. He cited work by Transport Research Laboratory suggesting that raising the speed limit would deliver “hundreds of millions” of pounds in economic benefits due to shorter journey times.
The research also found it would lead to 18 additional deaths a year. The proposals were dropped last June by Patrick McLoughlin, the Transport Secretary.
Robert Goodwill, the roads minister, insisted that the 60mph limits were “temporary”.
“Any speed restrictions to improve air quality would only ever [be] considered as part of road improvement work and would not be appropriate for the vast majority of projects started this Parliament,” he said.
“We are funding significant improvements to the road network. We need to ensure that as we invest we are alive to instances where there could be a negative effect on air quality.
Edmund King, the AA’s president, said reduced speed limits on the M1 were the “tip of the iceberg”. He added: “Our concern is how far this will spread, and whether the Government is effectively reducing speed limits by the back door.
“Having to go to 60mph will be incredibly hard to enforce and a lot of drivers will think it is unjust.
“It is not just the emissions from cars that are causing the problems, it is the emissions from trucks, but it is the cars which will now have to slow down. Motorists are being penalised.”
In a consultation launched on Monday, the Highways Agency announced plans for a 60mph speed limit between junction 28 of the M1, near Matlock, Derbyshire, and Junction 35A, near Rotherham, South Yorkshire.
The road is one of a new generation of “smart” motorways, where the hard shoulder is permanently opened to traffic to help ease congestion. Officials are concerned the additional traffic will have an “adverse impact on air quality” near nine areas close to houses and schools.
The agency has been forced to act after it emerged that the Government’s forecasts significantly underestimated the pollution levels on some roads.
Under EU guidelines, the Government could be fined hundreds of millions of pounds if the levels of nitrogen dioxide emitted by exhausts are breached.
The agency is proposing to reduce emissions by introducing a 60mph speed limit between 7am and 7pm, seven days a week, from 2015.
The consultation states that the limit is likely to be in place for “several years” until cleaner vehicles are developed.
Officials believe that a 60mph speed limit will cut emissions by reducing the amount of stopping and starting on congested stretches of motorway.
Janet Wilkinson, a major projects manager at the Highways Agency, said: “We will only be reducing the speed limits where it is absolutely necessary, it really is a last resort.
“We take air pollution very seriously, it is linked to illnesses like bronchitis and asthma. If we make pollution levels worse, we would be open to challenge. We could face big fines.”
Motoring groups warned that the lower speed limits could become increasingly common.
Officials are assessing whether to lower the speed limit on the M3 between junction 2 and 4a in Surrey, where there are high emission levels. From 2015 the agency will assess pollution levels for 13 similar schemes, including stretches of the M1, M3, M5, M6, M20, M23, M27 and M62.
Stephen Joseph, of the Campaign for Better Transport, welcomed the move and added that “around urban areas, people will have to get used to a lower speed limit on motorways”.
He said that while European regulations could be blamed for the planned changes, the “problem of air pollution from traffic and health won’t magically disappear if we leave the EU”.
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60mph speed limit proposal for stretch of M1 motorway
Comments (1118)
By Justin Parkinson Political reporter, BBC News
The government is proposing to set up a 60mph speed limit for a 32-mile stretch of the M1, in a bid to cut pollution.
The Highways Agency says the new restriction would apply from 7am to 7pm, seven days a week.
It would be in place from junction 28, near Matlock, Derbyshire, to junction 35a, north of Rotherham.
Variable speed limits are widely used to aid traffic flow, but the RAC said this could be the first time they had been implemented to cut air pollution.
It warned that reducing the maximum speed from the national standard 70mph to 60mph could "pave the way for similar restrictions on other sections of motorway" and there would "inevitably be a negative impact on business efficiency and individual mobility".
'Cleaner vehicles'
The Highways Agency said the lower limit, which has been put out to consultation, was likely to remain for "several years".
In its document, it stated that the current use of the 70mph speed limit for motorways was having "adverse impacts on air quality" and that cutting it would reduce emissions.
It also said the change would bring "reduced congestion, increased capacity and improved journey time reliability for users of the motorway".
The normal speed limit would still apply to the rest of the M1, which runs from north London to Leeds.
Tougher European Union guidelines on air quality have come into force and the agency argued that a lower limit would be needed to ensure these were met on the section from junctions 28 and 35a, which goes past Mansfield, Chesterfield and Sheffield.
It said: "For the purposes of this consultation, it should be assumed that the speed limit will need to be in place for several years. However, we are not able to give an indication in this document of how many years the speed limit will need to be retained."
But the document said: "It is expected that vehicle emissions will reduce as more new, cleaner vehicles come into use and older, more polluting vehicles become obsolete."
The agency said it could change its plans, by limiting the operation of the lower speed limits to peak hours, or Mondays to Fridays.
The length of the stretch of road affected could be shortened too, it added.
RAC technical director David Bizley said: "This is a landmark proposal as to the best of our knowledge motorway speed limits have not previously been lowered in order to comply with environmental legislation."
He added that it "would certainly negate some of the current benefits of operating this section as a 'smart' motorway where motorists are allowed to use the hard shoulder to reduce congestion".
Mr Bizley also said: "More worryingly, it could pave the way for similar restrictions on other sections of motorway. While preserving air quality is obviously a paramount concern there will inevitably be a negative impact on business efficiency and individual mobility.
"This very powerfully demonstrates the impact that speed has on emissions and many will be surprised to hear that a reduction of just 10mph can have such a significant effect on improving air quality."
The consultation will close on 3 March.