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@somebody
my point about 20 mph is mainly health and safety. cyclists and pedestrians tend to be less hurt if the motor powered vehicle (mpv) is going slower.
but yes cars at 20 mph are less noisy - fact. there are govn noise maps and surveys that have already established that.
reducing congestion. yes probably. what has happened in this country is that as the govn has built roads to reduce congestion people have just travelled further taking more overall road space. so over a couple of generations people have gone from say 15000 miles a year lifestyles to say 100000+ miles a year lifestyles. and pollution levels have gone up commensurately.
it has taken us 50 years to get to this car is king culture lifestyle and i reckon it may take us another 50 years to get away from it (to avoid social unrest).
what hmg need to do is break this vicious cycle. by making a bold statement that one can have a safe, good and enjoyable lifestyle by travelling less. and i think that 20 mph is the way to do it. and once that happens people will start making decisions that they can live a life without a car.
and then you start to stop criminalisation of the poor. many people cannot afford a car but because they wanna participate in the car culture so they drive illegally. and yes they add to congestion and kill and maim and pollute and hit and run etc. met police reckon that up to a third of london drivers are illegal. so if you break the car culture then hopefully you take away their reason to break the car laws. sure they may break other laws but hopefully not driving into me when i riding my bike.
i dont believe a 20 mph is ridiculous at all. i reckon it would be well good. and not just for cities, but for towns and villages as well.
i hope that is helpful.