“I don’t view the reduction in speed as a bad thing, but more important than setting a limit is ensuring that it can be respected and enforced,” said Carlos Pinto de Sá, the mayor of Évora.

The proposal to limit the speed to 30 kilometers per hour (km/h) throughout the urban area of ​​the municipality was presented to the Municipal Safety Council of Évora by GARE - Association for the Promotion of a Culture of Road Safety.

Speaking to Lusa, Adérito Araújo, leader and representative of the association on the Municipal Security Council, indicated that the proposal will be debated at the next meeting of this municipal consultative body, scheduled for Monday.

“The idea is that, fundamentally, Évora will have a speed limit of 30 km/h in all urban areas of the municipality,” he highlighted, noting that the measure has already been adopted in several European cities.

The officer stressed that “it is more than proven” that the measure “has enormous advantages, particularly in terms of safety and the environment, and, contrary to what many people think, traffic does not become less fluid”.

“In European cities that have already adopted the measure, the number of pedestrian and cyclist accidents is decreasing and the environment is also improving, since, with lower speeds, there is less combustion and less fumes,” he argued.

Adérito Araújo warned that setting the speed limit at 30 km/h requires changes in road traffic, with changes to some intersections and the creation of new roundabouts, to avoid traffic congestion.

The mayor of Évora highlighted that the municipality is already applying this speed limit in several areas of the municipality, namely throughout the historic center, adding that he intends to extend the rule to other areas.

Considering that “speed reduction cannot be done by decree”, Pinto de Sá argued that this objective will have to be achieved through changes to the roads, such as the installation of elevated crossings.

“We have to analyze in each area what the appropriate speed for traffic should be and take measures from a physical point of view to ensure that the speed is appropriate,” he added.