Welsh Government has approved the default 20mph speed limit to come into effect across Wales on September 17, 2023. All councils in Wales must therefore implement this initiative, which will result in most of the current default 30mph roads being reduced to 20mph later this year. As a general rule, it will apply to roads where street lighting is currently in place.
With just over a month to go until the default 20mph speed limit for Wales is adopted, Wrexham Council is at the next key stage – when you can have your say on the proposed roads that will be exempt from the default 20mph, and also roads that are proposed to drop to 20mph by Traffic Regulation Order.
The consultation is not about the default speed limit changing to 20mph in Wales – that legislation change has already been agreed by Welsh Government.
This consultation only relates to roads in Wrexham where a Traffic Regulation Order is required to change the speed to 20mph, or retain the speed at 30mph. All other roads that are currently at 30mph, will automatically drop to 20mph by default on September 17, 2023.
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10 roads identified
As part of the process of adopting the default 20mph speed limit for Wales this September, Wrexham Council has identified current 30mph roads that are proposed to be exempt from the changes as they do not meet the relevant criteria set by Welsh Government. In total, 10 roads have been identified and, if agreed, these roads would retain a 30mph speed limit after September 17. These are primarily buffer zones, where there is a drop in speed from national speed limit to 20mph.
The Welsh Government legislation change will not automatically change the speed limit on roads which are currently 30mph by virtue of a local Traffic regulation order. Therefore we have also reviewed all existing 30mph TRO’s and are proposing 28 locations where the existing 30mph TRO is changed to introduce a 20mph. This is again where we feel that these changes will improve roads safety and road conditions, and in order to avoid any potential issues caused by the national speed limit change.
The consultation period is open now and will close on the September 1, 2023, therefore please ensure any representations are made by this date. To find out where the proposed exemptions are, and have your say, please visit the Your Voice Wrexham consultation page.
Councillor Hugh Jones, lead member for environment, said: “Welsh Government’s introduction of the default 20mph speed limit is a big change for Wrexham, and for Wales, and whilst locally we cannot influence the national change, it is important that residents are able to have their say when it comes to these local exemption arrangements. I encourage as many residents as possible to take a look at the consultation and let us know their thoughts on the exemptions being proposed by Wrexham Council.”
If you would like to provide feedback on the proposed Order in writing, stating the reasons for your views or objections, email for the attention of: traffic@wrexham.gov.uk or by post to The Chief Officer Environment and Technical Department, Wrexham County Borough Council, Abbey Road South, Wrexham Industrial Estate, Wrexham LL13 9PW.
If you want to find out more about the default 20mph speed limit, you can take a look at the following links to the Welsh Government website:
