Road safety contacts

Donovan Thomas | Road Safety Officer | 020 7364 2221 | Donovan.thomas@towerhamlets.gov.uk

Elected members 

Cllr D Tomlinson | Dan.Tomlinson@towerhamlets.gov.uk
Cllr K Chowdhury | Kahar.Chowdhury@towerhamlets.gov.uk
Cllr K Perry | Kyrsten.Perry@towerhamlets.gov.uk

Tower Hamlets Council is committed to making the borough a safer place for all road users. Road traffic collision statistics show we are right to prioritise this important issue.

Measures undertaken to make roads safer include encouraging speed reduction, effective use of traffic management techniques and educating road users.

The council carries out the following activities:

• Providing road safety education in schools and road safety information to members of the public
• Promoting the Children's Traffic Club
• Running the Junior Road Safety Officers' Club
• Providing and managing the school crossing patrol service

School crossing patrols
School crossing patrol officers ensure children can cross the road safely at dangerous points on their journey to school.

How do you decide where to place a school crossing patrol?
School crossing patrols are provided at priority sites where children are in danger from road traffic when walking to and from school. This is not necessarily directly outside a school but could be anywhere on a busy route.

Can I request a school crossing patrol?
Requests for additional school crossing patrols can be made to transportation and highways. Following a request we will survey the area to see if it meets the national criteria, which includes a vehicle and pedestrian count. If approved, and funding is available, the council will seek to recruit a school crossing patrol officer to staff the new site.

Speed limits
Speed causes about one third of road accidents in the United Kingdom, especially in urban areas where speeding vehicles can adversely affect the quality of life of many communities. Consequently, speed limits have been introduced to improve road safety.

The main roads in Tower Hamlets are covered by a 20mph speed limit. Some Red Routes have a 40mph speed limit.

The council works with the police to review the justification for any request for an alteration to speed limits. If Red Routes are involved, the request would be forwarded to Transport for London who are responsible for these main roads.

Speed humps
The council no longer installs full-width rounded speed humps, because they can impair access for emergency services and buses. We tend to use the following speed reduction measures:

• Raised flat tables for pedestrian crossings or at junctions
• Chicanes
• Speed cushions

The council must follow regulations governing the layout of speed humps. There must be a ‘slowing feature’ before entering a road with speed humps – usually a sharp turn left or right into the road, a ‘give way’ sign, or a mini roundabout.

The shape of speed control tables and cushions are strictly regulated.