The UK is now home to over 42,000 individual speed bumps – with a welcome increase of 5% in the last three years, according to an exclusive Citroën investigation into Britain’s traffic calming coverage. As part of the Citroën Advanced Comfort® programme the Progressive Hydraulic Cushion® technology coupled with Advanced Comfort® front seats can reduce the ‘jolting’ often experienced, provided that speed bumps are approached at the correct speed and with care. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dts1UOiAqsE
The Citroën study shows speed bumps now provide safety benefits to more than 14,000 roads, stretching across an estimated 2,000 miles of Britains streets, according to figures obtained from local authorities.
Investment in speed bumps has seen a welcome 5% increase since 2015, with over 42,000 individual bumps recorded by county and borough councils across the country. Citroën also found there were a further 12,000 traffic calming measures such as speed tables, ramps and width restrictions.
Citroën conducted the research as part of its commitment to providing class-leading comfort for its customers. Earlier this year, the manufacturer tackled the pothole crisis afflicting Britain’s roads by paying for 200 holes to be filled across Surrey, one of the worst affected counties. In doing so, Citroën was able to provide road users in Surrey a glimpse in to what life with a New C5 Aircross SUV or C4 Cactus with Progressive Hydraulic Cushion® suspension would be like.
The figures were obtained through a Freedom of Information request to over 400 councils across the UK. Not all councils keep a central figure for the total number of traffic installations on the roads they are responsible for.
Speed bumps were first introduced in the UK in 1983 under The Highways (Road Humps) Regulations but their origins date back to the early 1900s in New Jersey, USA where they were installed to prevent speeding. Road safety experts say traffic calming measures like speed bumps are one of the key reasons why deaths on UK roads – especially for pedestrians, cyclists and children – have fallen by 80% since fatalities peaked in 1941.
Currently, London Borough councils have the highest percentage of speed bumps per miles of road responsible for, accounting for eight of the top 10. Newham Council reported speed bumps across every stretch of the 125 miles it was responsible for maintaining followed by Southwark (71%) and Hackney (69%). Outside of London, Norwich City Council topped the league table with traffic calming measures installed on 17% of its roads ahead of Portsmouth City Council (13%) and Bury Metropolitan Borough Council (12%).
Under The Highways (Road Humps) Regulations 1999, councils have devolved power from central Government to install humps and associated calming measures on roads with speeds of up to 30mph in the interests of road safety.
Souad Wrixen, Citroën UK’s Marketing Director, commented: “At Citroën, we are committed to providing our customers with the best journey experience possible no matter what the road surface. Speed bumps and other traffic calming measures have their place on UK roads helping to improve road safety and reduce fatalities. So, when approached at the correct speed and with care, our Citroën Advanced Comfort® programme will ensure that humps and speed tables can be navigated more comfortably, avoiding the sharp jolts often experienced by road users.”
Citroën’s award-winning Advanced Comfort® programme includes the pioneering Progressive Hydraulic Cushion® suspension fitted as standard on New C5 Aircross SUV and C4 Cactus. By filtering out bumps and dips in the road, the suspension system provides a more supple ride even on Britain’s worst afflicted roads.
SOURCE: CITROEN
