Executive summary
Strategic Transport Projects Review 2 (STPR2) identified a recommendation to undertake a National Speed Management Review, also a key commitment in Scotland Road Safety Framework to 2030. A key part of the recommendations of STPR2 was to consider altering National Speed Limits to promote reductions in collision rates and severity. This report identifies two specific options for consideration on Scotland’s National Speed Limit roads.
Option 1 proposes altering National Speed Limits for single carriageways (all vehicles) and for dual carriageway (good vehicles (>7.5t)), whilst Option 2 proposes altering speed limits for all vehicles on single carriageways, dual carriageways, and motorways. Key objectives of the options are to reduce the differences in speed limits for HGVs in comparison with other traffic and to reduce the number and severity of road traffic collisions.
The appraisal of the options presented in this report has identified that some of the key impacts of reducing speed limits include reductions in road collision rates and severity, small increases in journey times, reduction in noise levels, and reductions in NOx and greenhouse gas emissions.
The scale of these impacts is strongly linked to the level of speed limit compliance achieved. Education of the motoring public and enforcement strategies will be critical to ensure the impacts identified within this report can be obtained.
Reflecting that Option 2 will impact upon a wider proportion of the road network than Option 1 it is likely that Option 2 if successfully implemented would have a more significant effects than Option 1.
The options presented in this report can support Scotland’s ambitious and compelling long-term goal for road safety where no-one dies or is seriously injured by 2050 on our roads (Vision Zero).