Birmingham Local Conservatives are calling on Birmingham City Council to raise the speed limit on Heartlands Parkway back to 40mph.
Heartlands Parkway was built as a major bypass route, running through industrial land and helping drivers avoid travelling through residential roads in Saltley, Ward End and Washwood Heath. It was designed to carry traffic, relieve pressure from nearby communities and keep vehicles moving safely on a road built for that purpose.
It is not a pedestrianised high street. It is not a local shopping parade. It is not a narrow residential road with homes, schools and shops on both sides.
Yet Labour’s blanket approach to speed limits has seen Heartlands Parkway reduced from 40 mph to 30 mph, despite the road’s original purpose as a faster strategic route through East Birmingham.
We support sensible road safety measures. Where roads are residential, heavily pedestrianised, or have clear evidence of risk, lower limits can be the right answer. But road safety policy should be based on the character, purpose and evidence for each road, not imposed through a one-size-fits-all approach.
Now even Cllr Majid Mahmood, the former Labour Cabinet Member responsible for transport and environment, has publicly called for a review of 30mph limits on key routes, including Heartlands Parkway.
If Cllr Mahmood now accepts that roads like Heartlands Parkway need reviewing, then the Council should go further and restore the 40mph speed limit where it is safe and appropriate to do so.
Sign our petition calling on Birmingham City Council to raise the speed limit on Heartlands Parkway back to 40mph.