Wales to get new 20mph default limit
A NATIONAL 20mph limit will come into force in Wales from next year.
A vote was passed in the Senedd yesterday on Welsh Government plans to limit speeds on residential roads and busy pedestrian streets.
The Welsh Government says it will reduce the risk and severity of injuries as a result of collisions between vehicles and vulnerable road users, while also encouraging more people to cycle and walk, and will make Wales more attractive for our communities and bring physical and mental health benefits.
There have been pilot schemes running across Wales, and Senedd members last night voted with 39 in favour and 15 against.
In her speech ahead of the vote, climate change minister Julie James said: “The future of our towns and cities depends on our ability to move around sustainably and on solutions that have a positive impact on public health environment and communities. That is why we will use the principle that walking cycling and active travel must remain the best options for short urban journeys and a 20mph default speed limit will help achieve this.
“The introduction of a national 20mph limit would be an important and far reaching policy. If passed Wales would be the first country in the UK to introduce the change. We’re asking you all to be part of this change and make our communities understand the wider benefits of 20mph.
“This change is a generational one and when the time to embed, it will need to be accompanied by an important communication and marketing campaign and behaviour change initiatives. Achieving behavioural change is challenging but Wales has previously shown that we can do it successfully with policies such as organ donation, the banning of smoking in public places, and limiting the use of plastic bags. It does, however, require a collaborative effort between agencies, local authorities and by communities. We need to bring speeds down.”
She said there is evidence that 20mph limits lead to more people walking or cycling and she hopes it will lead to people naturally choosing those options.
It is not, she said, a blanket 20mph zone, but rather the Welsh Government is working with councils to pick which roads will be impacted.
Ms James said on average 80 people die on Welsh roads every year and 53% of accidents happen on 30mph, recent figures had shown.
The new limit will come into force from September 2023. The legal definition of where the scheme will be used is “restricted roads”, defined in legislation as a road where there is a “system of street lighting furnished by means of lamps placed not more than 200 yards apart”.
The Welsh Government says the changes affect residential roads and busy pedestrian streets. The Welsh Government continues to identify the roads where speed limits will be reduced to 20mph and those which should remain at 30mph.
The direct financial cost is around £33m but the Welsh Government say improved road safety resulting from a reduction in average speeds could result in a positive financial return over 30 years of around £25m due to cost savings associated with reduced emergency services and hospital treatment.