A Lanarkshire Tory MSP has backed her party’s campaign calling on the Scottish Government to stop its “war on motorists” amid plans to lower the speed limit for cars on single carriageway roads.
The Transport Scotland consultation, which runs until March 5, proposes reducing the speed limit from 60mph to 50mph for cars.
Under the plans, the limit for HGVs would increase from 40mph to 50mph on single carriageways and 50mph to 60mph on dual carriageways.
The new Scottish Conservative campaign claims the speed limit cuts would “penalise ordinary people, without cutting down on dangerous driving”. It adds that these proposals are the “latest front in the SNP’s war on motorists”.
Central Scotland Conservative list MSP Meghan Gallacher said: “Successive failed SNP transport ministers have shamefully neglected roads across Lanarkshire.
“For nearly two decades, the nationalists have monumentally failed to deliver the improvements Scotland’s roads need.
“This has led to roads across Lanarkshire becoming notorious for accidents, injuries and deaths.
“Rather than taking action to protect drivers, SNP ministers seem intent on punishing them to make up for their own failures to fix the roads.
“Fiona Hyslop should scrap these plans and finally deliver the road upgrades that motorists have been waiting so long for.
“I would urge people across Lanarkshire to join the Scottish Conservatives campaign to say no to 50 mph national speed limits and send the strongest possible message to the SNP.”
While the number of people who died on Scottish roads fell from 171 in 2022 to 155 in 2023, the overall number of casualties increased by three per cent with serious casualties up by nine per cent – from 1,778 to 1,930.
Announcing the consultation in Glasgow last November, Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop said: “Evidence from the National Speed Management Review indicates that revising speed limits could lead to a significant reduction in the number of injury collisions on our roads while maintaining journey times and enhancing journey time reliability.”
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