Cheshire Safer Roads Partnership argue drivers are more dangerous than rural roads they drive on

Dec 3 2009 by Ben Coulbeck, Chester Chronicle

OFFICERS belonging to the group responsible for increasing safety on the county's road network claim that drivers are the real threat, rather than the roads themselves.

The debate on whether rural roads across Cheshire should have their speed limits reduced has sparked a reaction from Cheshire Safer Roads Partnership.

At the recent annual Road Safety Expo in London, the Roads Safety Foundation (RSF) claimed that speed limits should reflect the risks of the road itself.

The RSF chairman John Dawson also said that lowering the speed limit was not the only answer and that issues about obstacles, junction layouts, overtaking zones also need to be resolved.

But Lee Murphy, who manages Cheshire Road Safety Partnership, told the Chronicle that despite difficult driving conditions and dangers associated with rural roads, it is the motorist who should be held responsible for how they drive. He said: “While we welcome debate with the Road Safety Foundation, we must stress that it is not the roads that are a risk, but motorists themselves.

“All motorists must always ensure they drive within the speed limit of the road and according to the conditions – in this way, they will help to bring down the number of people killed and seriously injured on Cheshire's roads.

“Extra care should be taken along rural routes, in the winter months due to the longer hours of darkness, in bad weather and where motorists may not be familiar with routes and junctions.”