Agenda item

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Enterprise, Planning and Infrastructure describing the background to concerns expressed by residents regarding the speed of traffic on the Old Lang Stracht, formerly the main link between Kingswells and Aberdeen. 

This length of road had been bypassed in 1999 and was now rural in nature with a current combined daily traffic flow of the order of 200 vehicles a day (in comparison with the several thousand that would have used it previously).

A significant percentage of this vehicular presence was accountable to public service vehicles, these being the only category exempt from the prohibition of driving at the location, implemented by means of a bus gate on Lang Stracht.

There were 18 houses along the length of road in question, and access to these properties was permitted only via the junction with Fairley Road. 

Access was restricted by a bus gate at the east end.  This had originally been enforced by means of a fixed position red light camera, but, having been damaged, this had been out of use for some time.  The report held out the hope that, in the event that enforcement of bus lanes was eventually decriminalised, as was being pursued at the present time, it would be possible to convert the bus gate to a bus lane, thereby allowing the Council to assume responsibility for enforcement of the traffic regulation at the location. 

With reference to Article 1 hereto, the Committee then heard from Mr. Alastair Gibb who was a resident at the Old Four Mile near Kingswells, and who went on to advance a series of arguments in support of a 30mph speed limit at this location instead of the 40mph limit being recommended by the roads officials in response to the aforementioned complaints about vehicular speeds. 

The Committee also heard from the Lord Provost, who was one of the local members, in support of the introduction of a 30mph limit, albeit in the face of central government guidelines which indicated the suitability of a 40mph limit at most. 

Discussion ensued on the status of central government guidelines, which were not mandatory but highly persuasive, and also the concern that adducing a special case here might create a difficult precedent to future requests for speed limits not supported by the guidelines. 

The Committee resolved:-

to request the officials to take the necessary steps to promote a traffic order providing for the introduction of a 30mph speed limit at this location, notwithstanding the advice of officers that such a limit was unlikely to be an effective or viable solution to perceived problems on a rural section of carriageway, but to approve the officers’ recommendation that the current bus gate be changed to a bus lane to allow for future enforcement by the Council if decriminalisation of bus lanes were to be secured as was intended.

At this juncture, the Convener left the meeting and the Vice Convener took the Chair.