- More than half a million people have signed a petition against the 20 mph limit
- Transport Minister Ken Skates set to announce policy change
Roads in Wales will return to 30mph following backlash over the Welsh Government’s controversial rollout of the 20mph zone.
Transport Minister Ken Skates said the decision to return some routes to 30mph speed limits will address concerns that “a lot of people” have raised “consistently”.
He said: “We have put our hands up to say that the guidance needs to be corrected. »
It comes after more than half a million signatures were added to a Senedd petition opposing the divisive policy aimed at cutting carbon emissions.
“There is generally universal support for the 20 mph speed to be targeted in areas where schools are located, built-up areas like housing estates, and outside hospitals etc.,” Mr Skates told North Wales Live.
“But in many areas, routes that should not have been included were.”
Transport Minister Ken Skates said the decision to return some routes to 30mph speed limits would address concerns that “a lot of people” have raised “consistently”.
Former Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford said more could have been done to “prepare the ground” for the controversial policy.
It comes after more than half a million signatures were added to a Senedd petition opposing the divisive policy aimed at cutting carbon emissions.
He is expected to address the upcoming changes in a statement to the Welsh Parliament on Tuesday.
Swansea Council leader Rob Stewart last night welcomed the change but said the Welsh Government, led by Labor First Minister Vaughan Gething, must help foot the bill to swap the signage.
However, Scottish First Minister Humza Yousef is considering introducing his own 20mph speed limit despite the experience of Wales, where some ministers have been victims of online abuse.
Former Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford said more could have been done to “prepare the ground” for the controversial policy.
The policy was introduced in September last year, with the promise that lower speed limits would lead to fewer collisions and injuries.
It also faced fierce opposition from the Conservatives in the Senedd, who called it a “waste of time and resources”.
He said that while the policy was in Labour’s manifesto at the last Senedd election, he understood that people in Wales “lead busy lives” and do not “spend their evenings leafing through the government’s agenda “.
He said: “So we probably could have done more,” he said. “Ultimately, no matter how much you lay the groundwork, when change comes it can be a challenge.
“Look at the history of changes in how people use their cars, it’s always been a challenge.
“Whether it was introducing speed limits of 30 mph, it wasn’t easy to do; the breathalyzer was fiercely contested by the population, as was the wearing of seat belts.
“I don’t think we look back now and say it wasn’t the right thing to do, we should allow people to spend the night at the pub, get in the car and go home.
“In the age of climate change, we will all have to travel differently. The idea that we can continue to use the world’s limited resources, for our own benefit, in our time, and leave the problem to someone after us to solve, cannot be a responsible way to approach these things.
“And as harsh as it has been in some ways, this policy remains a policy that will save lives, that will prevent thousands of accidents, that will get people back to the street they live on.
“Very few people are advocating for the street they live on to go back to 30 mph.”
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