Chance for Moray communities to install own speed signs
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MORAY councillors have backed a scheme to allow communities to purchase, install and maintain their own permanent speed warning signs.
The council and Police Scotland regularly deal with enquiries and complaints over perceived speeding issues within built-up areas and rural communities. The council installs the devices where it has been shown through testing that speeding poses a road safety threat.
However, Moray Council's economic development and infrastructure services committee heard this week that some of the communities requesting permanent signs have been surveyed and show no evidence of speeding issues.
Some councillors argued that people within the communities themselves knew best whether speeding posed a danger.
Independent Councillor Derek Ross (Speyside Glenlivet) said: "This is a huge issue in all the communities in Speyside Glenlivet.
"The arguments are subjective. I would argue that we listen to our communities. They know best – they live there.
"Allow them to purchase their own SIDs and remain the property not of Moray Council but of the communities.
"If you've been on Rothes High Street when the lorries are thundering through – and we've already had a near-tragedy on Rothes High Street where a lorry went through a house – I think we should err on the side of safety."
Moray has 19 permanently installed Vehicle Activated Signs, which are designed to curb speeds by reinforcing the posted speed limit or by making drivers aware of hazards, such as a sharp bend. It also has four temporary Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs) which display the speed of an approaching vehicle and encourage drivers to slow down if they are going too fast.
The committee looked at best practice for community requests for permanently sited and community operated SIDs. Councillors have now asked for an update on how the scheme will be implemented in future – pointing out that as well as raising £3000 to buy the devices, communities would need to be mindful of installation and continuing maintenance costs.
A report to the committee stated: "The first deployment of signs has been in the west of Moray in Rafford, Forres and Findhorn, where the local community councils have recently raised concerns.
"In the New Year, the signs will be deployed in the Speyside area at sites in Craigellachie and Dufftown, again in response to requests from the community."
However, the report to councillors noted that community requests for permanently sited and community operated SIDs was "against best practice" and could "undermine the effectiveness of the signage" as over-use of the signs can dilute the safety message.
The report warned: "Despite public perception, SIDs are not always effective in reducing vehicle speeds and in some locations can have the opposite effect of causing some vehicles to speed up."
In Scotland the general approach to enabling communities to address speeding concerns has been through the national Community Speed Watch initiative, in which members of the public help police to monitor speeds using speed detection devices.
