Please write urgently to your local press calling for 20’s Plenty for the NHS.  The NHS faces its greatest ever challenge.  Every crash victim fewer frees up capacity for Covid-19 and other sick people.  Spread this message to empower your politicians to act. Example below based on Prof John Whitelegg’s letter to the Shropshire Star.

Anna Semlyen, 20’s Plenty for Us National Campaign Manager said

“Please support medics calls for 20mph for the NHS by writing letters to your press, radio and Councillors.  Every time you call for 20mph limits it helps politicians feel empowered to do it!  Our letters offer them a public mandate for change.  Writing to amplify and spread agreement with the medics call for 20’s Plenty for the NHS will make a difference. Copy and paste the above. Add your local story and flavour. Get writing and emailing!”

Your address and date

Dear Letters

I support doctor’s demands that the Government make an emergency announcement for a national speed limit change to 20mph to help the NHS

Everyone I speak to is very grateful to our NHS and frontline staff working so hard in extremely difficult circumstances to deal with the virus emergency.  It’s clear that nationally our hospitals are under pressure from a surge in admissions, combined with some staff sick, or isolating due to the virus.

There are 3,000 admissions per month in England due to road traffic casualties. Even with non-essential traffic banned I’ve witnessed many vehicles going too fast.  Especially when social distancing means people are stepping off pavements to give others space. Key workers are warned off public transport so there’s been an increase in walking and cycling for essential travel and also for exercise.

Nationally and internationally it is best practice to adopt 20mph speed limits where pedestrians and cyclists mix with motor traffic. England signed the ‘Stockholm Declaration’ for this in February. A Canadian study found reducing speed limits to 20mph was associated with a 67% reduction in major and fatal injuries.

The Isle of Man has lowered maximum limits to 40mph. Speed limits were reduced in the oil crisis for economic reasons.

109 Public health experts wrote a letter to the Times on 22 March asking for reduced speed limits to ‘lower the baseline’ load and raise critical care capacity in hospitals.  I have written to my MP …………………. and …………….….. Council to ask them to support calls to reduce all 30mph limits to 20mph to help ambulance, A & E and free up resources for Covid-19. 

Please take a look at our site supporting the doctors wanting an emergency national 20mph urban limit at www.20splenty.org/lower_baseline.

20’s Plenty for the NHS. A 20mph limit is coming and is needed now in this emergency.  Please protect us all and free up hospital beds by making 20mph the speed limit here.

 Yours faithfully

Your name (and perhaps job title especially if it is emergency services related)