Council vehicles broke 20mph limits

While Borders drivers try to come to terms with the fact that 20mph zones are here to stay, it appears that certain Scottish Borders Council staff believe these rules don’t apply to them.
By Kevin Janiak
Published 13th Jan 2022, 09:20 BST
Updated 13th Jan 2022, 09:45 BST
An FOI has shown that some council workers have been speeding in the new 20mph zones.An FOI has shown that some council workers have been speeding in the new 20mph zones.
An FOI has shown that some council workers have been speeding in the new 20mph zones.

The controversial trial, which began in Borders towns last year as part of the Spaces for People project saw some drivers up in arms over the difficulty they had in keeping to 20mph, especially on long stretches and on hills.

However, an anonymous FOI request asked for the total number of incidents of council vehicles fitted with trackers that have exceeded the limit.

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The response showed that in November, 42 council vehicles had gone between 21-30mph in the new zones, and 36 had gone between 31-40mph.

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The highest speed recorded was 58mph.

The trackers took a record of the speed of the vehicles every 30-60 seconds.

A Scottish Borders Council spokesperson said: “The council expects everyone to abide by the speed limits in place on our local roads.

"Our staff are no exception to this and this will once again be reiterated to them by senior management.

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“In respect of this data, further interrogation has revealed some discrepancies, where the system has logged apparent speeding over 20mph when in fact the vehicle was in an area where a 60mph limit is in place.”