Congestion and chaos in the town now moving at 20mph
In 2023 every town in Wales will have 20mph zones - but ahead of that a Welsh Government trial has seen frustrations rise as drivers sit in slow-moving traffic for hours. Jonathon Hill reports
THERE’S nothing quite like driving through the quaint and green county of Monmouthshire.
With its winding hills and beautiful scenery, it’s an unbeatable spot for a quiet weekend away.
That’s until you reach Caldicot, where locals say they spend hours in queues of traffic.
The town is one of a few, including neighbouring Magor and Undy, being used as a pilot scheme for 20mph speed limits on all restricted roads in Wales in a bid to reduce casualties, encourage eco-friendly transport use and “make Wales more attractive”.
Planners might have been picturing scenes of children and parents walking hand in hand to school while cyclists commute breezily beside them but you only have to drive on the newly 20mph Newport Road and Caldicot bypass for a couple of minutes to realise that might be far removed from reality.
Over the noise of revving engines and barking drivers, motorists told us they are being passed by push bikes, are so focused on their speedometers they are not watching the road, and are often crawling at a low gear which they say is causing pollution and congestion chaos.
Taxi driver Daniel Thompson has been ferrying locals around for more than 15 years. He says he now spends around an hour and a half a day stuck in traffic since the scheme was introduced in March. It now regularly takes him 25 minutes to drive half a mile through Caldicot and Magor.
“There is a daily issue with traffic now, especially around Newport Road and stretching up to the bypass,” the 43-year-old Caldicot resident said. “Don’t get me wrong, if it was only introduced down side streets and around schools I don’t think anyone would be as angry as this.
“I find it so weird Caldicot has been chosen to pilot it. Why not Newport where it’s more built up? There have been no serious accidents in Caldicot and Magor, but there could be soon if this scheme carries on.”
The Welsh Government says the changes will only affect restricted roads, usually in residential and urban areas with high pedestrian activity. Residents here argue the bypass and Newport Road don’t have high numbers of walkers.
Ex-councillor Jane Pratt, who led the scheme for Monmouthshire until she was ousted in last week’s elections, said the council hoped to “create neighbourhoods which are shared more equally between road users”.
Sat outside the Cross Inn, Paul Edwards tells us the new limits are causing poorer air quality.
“Everyone slows down and backs up and the emissions are all crammed into one area,” he said. “Cars are bumper to bumper all the way, and we’re talking about improving air flow? It’s congested from Magor right up to the bypass. The only way to describe it is a complete mess.”
According to the Welsh Government, longer journey times do not mean more pollution, and slower moving vehicles increase eco-friendly behaviour such as walking and cycling instead of driving.
A document detailing reasons for the pilot scheme reads: “Evidence shows vehicle speed is the main reason why people do not walk, cycle or allow their children to walk, cycle or scooter to school.”
John Ball says he’s lost so many hours at a standstill outside his house on Chepstow Road since the new limits that he is “in a mind to start sending invoices for lost time”.
The 57-year-old gravedigger and groundsman at Caldicot Cemetery said: “I spend hours outside my house basically parked up chugging out fumes now. It’s an absolute nightmare, first it’s the traffic, then it’s the fumes, then the abuse. It’s a knock-on effect.”
His daughter Georgina Ball says it takes her 30 minutes to take her son to the local primary school when it used to take her just 10 minutes.
“I can’t tell you how frustrating it is,” she said. “I wouldn’t mind but it’s virtually impossible to keep to 20 without looking down constantly.”
She’s not the only one who thinks the changes make the roads more dangerous. As you come off the M4 into Magor, you travel a couple of hundred yards before the 30mph limit changes to 20, and then 40, then back to 20 and so on.
There are no cameras implementing the trialled 20mph limits, meaning those who abide by them sometimes face abuse and are overtaken by speeding motorists.
Biker Phil Vittle said speeding wasn’t much of a problem on the road but has become one since the new limits were introduced.
“I’ve been doing that road [Caldicot bypass] at 20 and I’ve had to go into third gear pumping all those lovely fumes out, and you get overtaken by cars now doing 40mph easily. That wasn’t happening before, everyone just did 30 and it was much safer,” he said.
“On an open road with little chance of pedestrians people just don’t see the reason behind it. It’s absolutely stupid.”
Mechanic Ben Morgan, who runs Magor Motors with his father Rod, said driving on Newport Road is becoming frightening.
“I was driving along there at 10pm the other night doing 20 and the car behind me didn’t just overtake me, but overtook the car in front too,” he said.
“It’s so, so dangerous. It’s terrible for fuel economy and pollution because you’re constantly in second gear.”
Not everyone is against the new limits though, provided they make a positive difference.
Steve Jones says he trusts experts have got it right in forecasting safer roads and less pollution.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) says the most effective way to improve pedestrian safety is to reduce the speed of vehicles. According to the WHO, half of casualties on roads in the UK in 2018 occurred on 30mph roads.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents says 45% of road fatalities happen when a car is going at 30mph or less but only 5% when driving under 20mph or less.
“It has certainly taken some getting used to and I’m not entirely sure it’s the right way forwards, but if it saves lives and saves the environment then surely it’s the right approach,” Steve said.
“I have a big-engine car and it is strange going that slowly and there is more traffic.
“I do fear that with idiots tailgating it could cause an accident.”
The consensus is that on roads where pedestrians are likely to walk, 20mph is the correct limit, but most believe it is “illogical” along main driving routes.
A Welsh Government spokesman said: “We are currently trialling the implementation of 20mph zones across strategically chosen communities before plans to make it the legal default speed limit on all restricted Welsh roads next year.
“The evidence is clear: reducing speed helps to reduce accidents, save lives and helps improve quality of life in communities by making room on our streets for safer active travel.”