Claims anti-car agenda being pushed during coronavirus lockdown in Birmingham

And he plans on writing to the Transport Secretary to oppose Birmingham City Council cabinet’s attempts to have the speed on all residential streets in Birmingham reduced to 20mph.

Councillor Meirion Jenkins urged the cabinet to “remember that we are a motor trade city and that many hard-working people in our city rely upon the motor trade to make their living”.

Councillor Jenkins was writing in response to a letter from transport leader Councillor Waseem Zaffar to Transport Secretary Grant Schapps, in which he requested that all residential streets be made 20mph by default, covering approximately 90 per cent of the city’s roads.

However Councillor Jenkins claims that there is "no evidence" that 20mph speed limits are effective, insisting that the money to turn these roads into 20mph zones could be better spent elsewhere.

“I think it is quite wrong that you should use this period of national crisis to promote your anti-car and anti-motorist views to the detriment of our city,” he wrote.

“At this time particularly, when the Prime Minister made clear that people should use their cars for the sake of public safety, you should remember that we are a motor trade city and that many hard-working people in our city rely upon the motor trade to make their living.

“The Department for Transport released a report in 2019 that showed there is no road safety benefit from these schemes. In addition, they have negligible impact on modal shift or traffic speeds.

“The evidence showed that significant sums of money have been wasted on implementing 20 mph schemes, money which could have been much better spent on more effective road engineering or education.

“I shall be writing to the Transport Secretary to oppose this request.”

However Councillor Zaffar has hit back at the claims, stating that the proposals are "pro-people", not "anti-car".

“Our action here is entirely consistent with the Government’s recent call for local authorities to take action that makes it easier for people to get around by walking and cycling, as well as having received backing from the medical profession,” he said.

“Promoting road safety is not anti-car, it is pro-people. Reducing average speeds is proven to reduce the number of collisions as well as the severity of those which do occur, anything that contributes towards this objective should be welcomed.

“Our request for DfT support to implement the council’s policy of 20mph speed limits in residential areas in this way would enable it to be delivered quicker and more cost-effectively, freeing up resource that can be used towards other measures such as education or engineering.

“There is clear public support for 20mph speed limits, with surveys consistently showing between 70 per cent & 80 per cent of people in favour of this.”

And Councillor Zaffar was backed by Councillor Paulette Hamilton, cabinet member for health and social care, during last week’s West Midlands briefing.

She said: “I am absolutely in support of this. What we have to remember is many people don’t have cars and cars cannot continue to rule the roads.

“Even though the Government has said in the short term they would prefer us to use cars, what we need to remember is – we will get out of this.

“When we put people back in cars, it becomes impossible to get them out of cars. As a city, we have been working towards using bicycles, walking, using green space, having better air to breathe.

“I don’t believe because of an emergency that we fall away from all of that.

“I truly believe we have got to encourage people out of the cars.”