If you’ve been keeping up with highway rules and regulations in the UK, you may have heard that new 60mph speed limits have been introduced in several specific areas. The government has confirmed that between certain junctions, 60mph limits are now being enforced on the M6, M1, M602 and M5.
Unsurprisingly, reducing the speed limit in these areas from 70mph to 60mph hasn’t gone down well with everyone. There are those who believe motorway speed limits should be increased to a standard of 80mph, for whom the idea of slowing things down further is frankly ridiculous.
Nevertheless, the government insists that it is a necessary measure for a number of reasons.
Reduced Air Pollution Levels
For example, air pollution in England alone is set to play a role in at least 40,000 premature deaths each year. That’s a pretty excessive mortality rate, when considering traffic alone is responsible for much of the nitrous oxide released into the air.
As for whether reducing motorway speed limits to 60mph will help, officials have already reported that air pollution is down as much as 17% around the newly-slowed stretches of motorways. Given that the experiment is still at a relatively remedial stage, this would seem to suggest that it can and will reduce air pollution levels further.
Improved Overall Road Safety
Of course, the government is also touting the new restrictions as a necessary measure to improve road safety in general. It’s assumed that on stretches of road where traffic volumes are heaviest and congestion most likely, reducing speed limits can significantly reduce the risk of accidents, or injuries and fatalities.
Interestingly, there’s not currently a great deal of formal evidence to support this theory. In fact, there’s just as much evidence to suggest that reduced speed limits (or variable speed limits in particular) can sometimes have the opposite of the intended effect.
Though in this instance, it’s worth highlighting again that the experiment is at a relatively remedial stage. Whether or not it improves road safety on these particular stretches of motorway remains to be seen.
A Project with Positive Intentions
Irrespective of whether or not the project makes a real difference long-term, its positive intentions are clear. Plus, there’s no escaping the importance of bringing air pollution levels under control, which are currently leading to tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths each year.
In any case, drivers have no choice but to obey the new rules, or risk a standard £100 fine and three penalty points for flouting them.
Take My Scrap Car…
Here at Take My Scrap Car, we specialise in all aspects of responsible and efficient car scrapping and recycling. When the time comes to get rid of an end-of-life vehicle, we promise to pay the best possible price based on scrap values on the day.
For more information on the services we provide or to arrange collection of a scrap vehicle in your area, contact a member of the team at Take My Scrap Car today.
