A plan to halve the number of road deaths by 2030 and completely wipe them out by 2050 in Barnsley was introduced and called into question this week.
While the number of overall road casualties has decreased by 24% during the past ten years, the number of people killed or seriously injured has increased by 4% during the past 12 months.
However, the council’s aims may be too much of an ask, according to some residents and councillors, as current trends would need to rapidly improve during the next five years for these targets to be reached.
Cabinet spokesperson for Environment and Highways, Councillor James Higginbottom (pictured), described these aims as “ambitious targets” and Safer Roads Strategy members said that while optimistic, the targets were still realistic and feasible.
But during the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting earlier this week, other councillors were more sceptical of the 2030 aim.
They claimed a limited budget and a trend much slower than is required makes the task seemingly impossible.
Donna Roden, a retired traffic police sergeant who lives in West Barnsley, said: “I’m not convinced they are in any way achievable.”
Cllr Higginbottom said safety was the top priority and two new speed indicator devices have been installed and rotated along 94 sites in 2024.
Along with this over 50 20mph School Safety Zone advisory signs have been installed at 24 school sites since 2022, with seven more to be added in the next financial year.
He said: “Every life lost or seriously affected by a road collision is a tragedy for families and the wider community.”
As well as infrastructure, the council has developed campaigns to educate drivers, such as the ‘Don’t Drive Daft’ and the ‘Safer Roads Barnsley’ campaigns.
Cllr Higginbottom reported that male drivers aged between 17-24 are the leading offending demographic in the area and he is looking to implement “education and engagement campaigns, particularly for high-risk groups such as young drivers.”
Feature Image from Barnsley Council website
