Chichester's city-centre 20mph speed limit has been defended by West Sussex County Council, after criticism from an Observer reader.
The reader questioned why the authority spent 'many pounds' on putting up speed limit signs on all entrances to the city.
And he claimed the majority of drivers not only made no attempt to adhere to the limit, but often exceeded 30mph.
A county
council spokesman said the 20mph signs at the extremities of the city centre notified the driver a mandatory speed limit existed within this area.
"The 20mph zone was installed a number of years ago, as part of a package of measures to encourage lower speeds and make the city centre safer and more pleasant for residents, shoppers and visitors," he said.
National guidance stated 20mph zones should be self-enforcing and therefore not placing further demands on the resources of the police.
"The nature of the roads within Chichester city centre – ie the alignment, width etc – do reinforce the self-enforcing aspect of the zone," the spokesman added.
"However, sadly, and similar to roads throughout West Sussex, there will always be a number of drivers who disregard the speed limit and in so doing endanger other road users as well as themselves.
"Notwithstanding this, we do believe the average vehicle speeds throughout the centre of Chichester are consistent with 20mph zones elsewhere in the county."
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The full article contains 303 words and appears in OS-Chichester Observer newspaper.
