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Paper Title:
Christchurch's 40km/h
Part Time School Speed Zone Trial: Community Perceptions and Attitudes
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Authors:
Paul Cottam
Abstract:
Christchurch's two year
part time 40km/h school speed zone trial started in January 2000.
An evaluation of the trial has been carried out by the city council
in terms of attitudes and perceptions of its effectiveness. This
evaluation complements that carried out by the Land Transport Safety
Authority which measured vehicle speeds, the results of which are
also being presented at this conference.
The five school communities
involved and a section of the general driving public were surveyed.
Results show a high level of support for the school speed zones,
and for their extension. They were seen by respondents to slow vehicle
speeds, raise driver awareness of children, and increase the safety
of children. A key reason for the high levels of support was that
drivers were happy to comply with the lower speed limit as it was
only a temporary restriction during the day whose merit was strongly
recognised. The electronic lights activated during the before and
after school period when the school speed zone operates were felt
to be an important feature to driver behaviour modification. Following
the trial it is planned to develop criteria to determine where the
most appropriate locations are for installing school speed zones.
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