The speed limit is set to be cut on a stretch of Ayr Road where a “high number” of collisions resulting in injuries were recorded over a five-year period.

East Renfrewshire Council is planning to reduce the limit from 40mph to 30mph on just over three miles of the road to improve safety.

Accident statistics show 22 crashes between January 2018 and December 31, 2022 and “two out of every three casualties were cyclists or pedestrians”.

Figures reveal there was one fatal crash, four serious injuries and 18 slight injuries over the five years.

Officials said this compares “very unfavourably” with the entire East Renfrewshire road network. 

“There is an unusually high number of pedestrian and cyclist casualties in road traffic collisions on Ayr Road,” they added.

“It is known that the severity of injury rises exponentially relative to the speed of the vehicle involved.”

Cabinet members will be asked to approve the speed limit cut at a meeting next Thursday.

The A77 Ayr Road extends from the boundary with East Ayrshire Council at the Floak Bridge to the A726 Eastwood Toll in Giffnock.

Previously part of the Gretna-Stranraer-Glasgow-Stirling trunk road managed by Scottish Ministers, it has become the responsibility of East Renfrewshire Council since the M77 opened between Haggs and Malletsheugh.

The council has altered the road to provide a cycle lane, a vehicular traffic lane in each direction and a right turn area. 

National policies have now established a “road user hierarchy” which prioritises pedestrians and cyclists and promotes 20mph limits in residential areas.

The 3.2 mile (5.2km) stretch of Ayr Road affected by the change includes seven controlled pedestrian crossings.

Four are between Mearns Cross and Maidenhill, where there are schools, bus stops, shops, restaurants, businesses and a leisure centre.

A council report added the current 40mph limit was “appropriate for a trunk road” but a 30mph is now “more appropriate and safer for all road users”.

It stated: “This proposed speed limit change would improve safety for all classes of user (especially the more vulnerable), with only a minimal time penalty for motorised travellers.”

Consultation on the reduction was held earlier this year, with six letters of support and five objections.

Opponents raised concerns about traffic flow and longer journey times.