Council awaits further guidance over review of 20mph speed limits

Bridgend County Borough Council is awaiting revised guidance from Welsh Government over how a forthcoming review of 20mph speed limits will be carried out.

Once this guidance has been received, the council will publicise details for how residents can take part and put forward roads that they think should be included as part of the review.

It follows a recent statement to the Senedd from Transport secretary Ken Skates in which he outlined a three-part plan consisting of listening to the views of key stakeholders, working with councils and key partners to identify which roads need updating, and finally implementing and carrying out the changes.

Addressing the Senedd, the Cabinet Secretary said: “We continue to believe that 20mph is the right speed limit in places such as near schools, hospitals, nurseries, community centres, play areas and in built-up residential areas.

“The principal objective of the policy is to save lives and reduce casualties on our roads. What I am doing now is listening to what people want for the roads in their communities, and pressing ahead with refining the policy and getting the right speed on the right roads.”

“It is important to note that until Welsh Government produces their revised guidance on exceptions to the 20mph speed limit, the council is not going to be able to engage in any meaningful dialogue on whether sections of road need to be revised or not.

It also needs to be clearly understood that once the scheme is launched, only sensible suggestions which incorporate valid reasons for why a specific road should be exempt will be considered. This is not about reverting all roads back to 30mph, and general comments or criticisms of the speed limit policy will need to be directed towards Welsh Government as they will not be logged or considered as part of this process.

As soon as further guidance has been received from Welsh Government confirming their requirements and the timescale for this process, we will look to publicise full details on how people will be able to have their say and take part, and help us to find the right balance for our local communities.

Councillor John Spanswick, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment