Why is the default speed limit changing to 20mph in Wales and could it be introduced elsewhere?

From today a default 20mph speed limit has been introduced in Wales.

Most roads which were previously 30mph will now have a reduced speed limit.

The Welsh government included the new default limit in the party’s manifesto ahead of the 2021 Senedd election.

In it, the party, led by Mark Drakeford, pledged to make 20mph the norm in residential areas.

The legislation was approved by the Senedd in July last year, meaning Wales is the first UK nation to introduce a default limit.

Why are they doing it?

The government says the change will save lives and help build “safer communities” by reducing the number of collisions.

It says default 20mph limits will make streets quieter by reducing noise pollution.

First Minister Mark Drakeford has also said people will have more confidence to cycle and walk around their local communities with vehicles travelling at slower speeds.

Has it been done elsewhere?

Spain changed its default speed limit on roads with a single lane in each direction to 30km/h (18.6mph) in 2021.

The country’s directorate-general for traffic said the risk of death in a road traffic collision was reduced on a road with a lower speed limit.

It said the risk was 80 percentage points lower if the speed of the impacting vehicle was 30km/h, compared with 50km/h.

Could it be introduced in other parts of the UK?

In Scotland, the government hopes to lower the speed limit of most residential roads to 20mph by 2025.

The SNP and the Greens outlined the proposal as part of the shared policy programme they published in 2021.

While there is no nationwide rollout in England, several areas, including Bristol and Manchester, have either already introduced a default limit of 20mph or have outlined plans to do so.

All roads within London’s congestion charge zone also have a 20mph speed limit.

How will it be enforced?

Just as with any other speed limit, police officers will enforce them.

Members of the fire service will give people the opportunity to view an educational video about the new limit, instead of facing prosecution.

What if the sat nav says something different?

The RAC says people should pay “full attention to all road signage” and shouldn’t rely on their sat navs to know what the speed limit is on roads in Wales until systems have updated.

Its head of policy, Simon Williams, also said RAC research suggested compliance with 20mph speed limits is quite poor and added it would be “more effective to target areas where they are most needed”.

Read more:
Drivers in North Wales left confused over conflicting speed signs
Police chief admits ‘impact’ of speed change on emergency services

Does everyone support it?

While many support the policy, it has also faced significant criticism, particularly from the largest opposition party in the Senedd, the Welsh Conservatives.

Group leader Andrew RT Davies has previously called it an “economy-stifling vanity project”.

Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth accused the Conservatives of “playing politics” but admitted even people who were supportive of Labour’s policy in principle had “real concerns”.

He told the first minister in the Senedd chamber the policy should be reviewed after seeing how it works in practice.