The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council imposing new speed restrictions. Any injustice is not sufficient to warrant investigation by the Ombudsman.
The complaint
Mr X complained the Council did not properly consult before imposing a speed restriction on a section of road he uses daily. It has lowered the speed limit from 70 to 50 miles per hour irrationally, disproportionately and without adequate justification. Mr X wants the Council to properly consult and reconsider this.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X complains about the process the Council followed in consulting about proposed changes to speed restrictions on a section of road he uses daily. He says, for example, the Council published details of the proposal two days before responses were required from the public.
We must consider whether there is sufficient evidence of injustice caused to complainants when we decide whether it is a good use of public resources to investigate complaints. The injustice caused to a person individually by this speed restriction is under one minute added travel time per journey, if driving the full length of the restriction. Mr X highlighted there are many people using this section of road. I have considered this, however there is no overwhelming public interest in us investigating this complaint. Any injustice to individuals is negligible.
In any event, the Council has explained the reasons for imposing a lower speed limit, and I am not of the view this outcome is likely to have been different but for any fault in the consultation process we may find if we were to investigate the complaint. There is insufficient evidence of injustice caused by the Council’s actions.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because any injustice caused by fault in the Council’s consultation process is insufficient to justify investigating.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman