A 20mph zone has been expanded to include roads around 14 more schools and nurseries.

The scheme, in Sevenoaks, has also been rolled out near near care homes, the Adult Education Centre and Sevenoaks Hospital.

New 20mph repeater signs have already been erected along with larger gateway signs at all the entrances to the scheme.

Among the schools now protected are Lady Boswell’s Primary, Trinity, the satellite sites for the Weald of Kent Grammar and Tunbridge Wells Boys Grammar, St Thomas Primary and Pre-School. Also Sevenoaks Primary and Pre-School, Acorns Nursery, Walthamstow Hall Junior and Secondary, Oakley Nursery and Pre-School and the Children’s Workshop

The new limits are an extension to the existing 20mph zone which already protected the schools of St John’s, Walthamstow Hall senior and junior, Sevenoaks Primary and Granville.

The new zones were approved by the Sevenoaks Joint Transportation Board last March.

The work has been undertaken by Kent County Council (KCC), but it is being paid for by Sevenoaks Town Council.

The cost is estimated at just over £154,000, which will be met using money from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) collected from developers.

To view exactly which roads are included in the scheme, click on this link.

The mayor of the town council, Cllr Libby Ancrum said: “We are delighted to be implementing a 20mph scheme for our town.

“Across the country, communities like ours are putting pedestrians and active travel to the fore with schemes just like this.

“There is a great deal of evidence that, in urban settings, lower vehicle speeds significantly reduce accidents, improve air quality and make the community a better place to be.

“Perhaps contrary to expectation, there is also evidence that traffic flows are improved, too.

“We are very pleased that residents of the town supported the project, and we are looking forward to delivering a safer, greener Sevenoaks."

The town council carried out a six-week consultation on the proposals at the end of 2023 and returns showed that 61% of the town’s residents backed the scheme.

KCC has evidence suggesting that a pedestrian is five times more likely to die if hit at 30mph than at 20mph.”

As well as the obvious personal tragedy and loss, there is a financial cost to accidents: lost earnings, the cost of healthcare, the lost time caused by the resulting congestion, the cost of the emergency services, and any necessary clean-up and repairs.

The Department for Transport estimates the average cost of accidents at £1.9m for fatalities, £220,000 for serious injuries, and £17,000 for slight injuries.

In the 10 years prior to April 1, last year, (which included the abnormally quiet period during the Covid lockdown) there were 295 accidents in Sevenoaks involving 506 vehicles, which resulted in 362 casualties.

The scheme does not involve the use of road humps, nor will there be any permanent enforcement by CCTV cameras.

Some key roads in the town are not included. They are St Botolph's Road, Hitchen Hatch Lane, Mount Harry Road, the northern section of the A225 from the Vine to the Bat and Ball Junction, the A224 Tubbs Hill, part of the London Road (to the junction of Pembroke Road), and part of Seal Hollow Road.

There is still some work yet to do with some roads to receive coloured Tarmac, white lining and painted roundals on the surface of the carriageway.

To facilitate that work, there will be overnight road closures on September 26 and 27, on Seal Hollow Road, Betenson Avenue and Lambarde Road.

Cllr Tony Clayton is the chairman of council’s finance and delivery committee. He said: “This is a major step forward for road safety in Sevenoaks.

“The number of school students on Sevenoaks streets each day is 8,000 and rising, and there is an urgent need for more of them to be able to walk or cycle safely to school.

“We also expect the scheme to reduce congestion and pollution in the town.

“We will be monitoring its impact, and asking schools to promote the new limits to parents and students.”

The new 20mph limits become legally enforceable on October 1.