Letters: Go slower, save lives

TIM Newark suggests that the Green Party’s pride in making Islington the first 20mph borough in the country is cynical electioneering and an empty gesture (Few back 20mph, December 11). The same day, however, the BBC reported research, just published in the British Medical Journal, which shows what Greens have said all along – that 20mph speed limits save lives.
Based on 20 years of accident statistics, the study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that 20mph zones have reduced road injuries by more than 40 per cent in zoned areas.
The reality is not just that accidents are less likely to happen at slower speeds, but more importantly that pedestrians, cyclists and drivers themselves are all more likely to survive an accident if the car is only moving at 20mph.
Safer streets for Islington will be one plank in the Green Party’s platform for the council elections next May. We think the facts speak for themselves.
Andrew Myer
Islington Green Party