Is the Minister aware of any roads planned to be exempt from the 20mph speed limit by a Welsh local authority, and if so, how many?
Details of the monitoring and data being collected from these first phase settlements was published with the Explanatory Memorandum in June when the legislation was laid.
Speed monitoring is taking place at 56 locations, using installed loops, radar or pneumatic tubes depending on location. Air quality monitoring is taking place at three locations – at each location, more than one device has been installed to cover adjacent 20mph and 30mph sections of the same road. Pedestrian and vehicle interaction monitoring is also taking place at three locations.
People surveyed say that traffic speed is a barrier to walking and cycling for short journeys. Every bus and rail journey starts and ends with a pedestrian journey. By lowering the speed limit, we’re helping to create safer, quieter, and more pleasant environments where people feel safer to walk and cycle, further reducing air pollution and benefiting people’s health and the local economy. Welsh communities will become better places to live.
As 20mph is the default speed limit on restricted roads, there are no traffic calming measures, such as narrowing carriageways or removing centre lines, included in the 20mph rollout programme. If they are deemed necessary at any location, then the funding of such measures would form part of other transport grant bids by local authorities in the future.
To assist with the understanding of where the exceptions will be located, the Welsh Government has launched an interactive map which will be updated regularly as highway authorities go through the consultation process.