Background: In 2016 places like Edinburgh, Scotland, and Belfast, Northern Ireland, imposed widespread 20 mph speed limits. It's significant that both communities were successful in establishing 20 mph speed limit initiatives. They provide examples of how public health and transportation policies change. This essay explains how the two cities' 20 mph speed limit initiatives came to be. Methods A qualitative case study approach was used. Data were gathered through interviews with stakeholders participating in the pre-implementation activities and available papers. Each city's documents and interviews underwent a unique inductive theme analysis [1]. Results The research produced five significant themes: political leadership, the national policy background of the two cities, support for 20 mph, resistance, and the essential acts involved. In Edinburgh, a 20 mph speed limit was implemented between July 2016 and March 2018. About 50% of Edinburgh's streets already had a 20 mph speed restriction; the goal was to raise that number to 80%, with the other 20% of streets, largely arterials, keeping a 30 or 40 mph speed limit [2]. On 76 streets in the heart of Belfast, 20 mph speed limits were put in place [4].
Published Date: 2022-09-30; Received Date: 2022-09-01
