Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee
Scottish Government submission of 14 February 2022
PE1925/A – Bring the HGV speed limit on major trunk roads to 50 mph in line with other parts of the UK
Thank you for your email of 13 January 2022 requesting the Scottish Government’s views on the action called for in the above-mentioned new petition.
Our own evaluation of the potential impacts of increasing speed limits for HGVs in Scotland – published in 2018 at https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/evaluation-of-the-potential-impacts-of-increasing-speed-limits-for-hgvs-in-scotland/ - shows that there are small safety benefits and marginal environmental impacts. We also evaluated a pilot of the A9 HGV speed increase in 2018, which showed positive road safety benefits - https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/42374/evaluation-report-june-2018-a9-perth-to-inverness-hgv-50mph-trial.pdf.
Road safety remains of paramount importance to the Scottish Government. We are committed to supporting the freight industry and the huge contribution hauliers make to Scotland’s economic growth and prosperity. We are considering our policy on HGV speed limits as part of the National Speed Management Review which is part of a commitment made in Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2030 published in February 2021.
The National Speed Management Review has commenced and will consider appropriate vehicle speeds for Scotland’s roads. The process, which will include stakeholder and public consultation, will thereafter consider whether any changes to speed limits may be beneficial for specific locations on the trunk road network.