CAN+I has written to Perth and Kinross Council to find out why Coupar Angus has been omitted from a recently announced trial of 20mph speed limits. The areas to be covered by the new pilot scheme include Errol, Rattray, Aberfeldy, Kinnesswood and Dalginross, Comrie.
Perth and Kinross Council has been considering the introduction of area-wide 20mph limits since 2008, when Councillor – now Provost – Dennis Melloy informed the local Community Council of the plan. However it was not until 2014 that the Council agreed to try out the reduced limit in four towns including Coupar Angus. All the streets in Coupar Angus apart from the A94 and the A923 were proposed for the 20mph zone.
In 2016 the Council abandoned the plan.
Freedom of Information request
In response to a Freedom of Information request by a local resident, Council officers said they made their decision in response to instructions by the Environment and Infrastructure Committee:
“Due to the pressures on budgets, the Enterprise and Infrastructure Committee recognised and advised that we will now have to prioritise our various work streams. One of the areas that will be affected is the large number of requests for the introduction of 20mph zones. To try and manage and prioritise these requests, Officers will only take them forward if the requests are based on specific and justifiable reasons, and be seen as exceptional, rather than the norm.”
The statement continued:
“The decision was made out with an Enterprise and Infrastructure Committee meeting and therefore there is no note of any meeting.”
It remains unclear as to which elected members were involved in the decision to abandon the first pilot project. However, the convener of the Environment and Infrastructure Committee at that time, John Kellas, expressed his personal antipathy to the idea claiming that the widespread introduction of the lower limit would “dilute” the effect of existing 20mph areas near schools.
In 2018 a survey of local opinion in Coupar Angus showed that three quarters of local residents were in favour of a town-wide 20mph speed limit - https://data.surveygizmo.com/r/412325_5a5a8c349b50d6.61468434. The four elected members who represent Coupar Angus in Perth and Kinross Council were informed of the findings, but so far none have expressed their support for the idea.
Perth and Kinross Council has been considering the introduction of area-wide 20mph limits since 2008, when Councillor – now Provost – Dennis Melloy informed the local Community Council of the plan. However it was not until 2014 that the Council agreed to try out the reduced limit in four towns including Coupar Angus. All the streets in Coupar Angus apart from the A94 and the A923 were proposed for the 20mph zone.
In 2016 the Council abandoned the plan.
Freedom of Information request
In response to a Freedom of Information request by a local resident, Council officers said they made their decision in response to instructions by the Environment and Infrastructure Committee:
“Due to the pressures on budgets, the Enterprise and Infrastructure Committee recognised and advised that we will now have to prioritise our various work streams. One of the areas that will be affected is the large number of requests for the introduction of 20mph zones. To try and manage and prioritise these requests, Officers will only take them forward if the requests are based on specific and justifiable reasons, and be seen as exceptional, rather than the norm.”
The statement continued:
“The decision was made out with an Enterprise and Infrastructure Committee meeting and therefore there is no note of any meeting.”
It remains unclear as to which elected members were involved in the decision to abandon the first pilot project. However, the convener of the Environment and Infrastructure Committee at that time, John Kellas, expressed his personal antipathy to the idea claiming that the widespread introduction of the lower limit would “dilute” the effect of existing 20mph areas near schools.
In 2018 a survey of local opinion in Coupar Angus showed that three quarters of local residents were in favour of a town-wide 20mph speed limit - https://data.surveygizmo.com/r/412325_5a5a8c349b50d6.61468434. The four elected members who represent Coupar Angus in Perth and Kinross Council were informed of the findings, but so far none have expressed their support for the idea.
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