20mph speed limit enforcement to be ramped up today
Emily Price
Enforcement of Wales’ controversial new 20mph speed limit will be ramped up from today.
In September, Wales became the first UK nation to roll out a 20mph default speed limit.
It saw most roads that were 30mph switch to 20mph – although councils have the discretion to impose exemptions.
Since the rollout, GoSafe has continued to enforce 20mph sites which were 20mph prior to September following a pause whilst appropriate orders and signage were confirmed.
This was to allow the public to get used to the change and for data to be collated.
Safer
GoSafe is a partnership between the four police forces, the 22 local authorities and the Welsh Government with the aim of making Welsh roads safer.
In January, they launched Operation Ugain which saw roadside teams use speed monitoring equipment to catch offending motorists.
Engagement sessions were offered to those caught speeding – but drivers who did not wish to receive the engagement were prosecuted.
9 people in total were prosecuted in January and February.
From Monday (March 18), enforcement will be begin on roads that changed to 20mph in September as part of the default switch.
GoSafe says engagement will still be prioritised above prosecution but that any emerging concerns from the public about speeding will be reviewed and enforced.
Locations earmarked for 20mph enforcement will be plotted on the GoSafe website homepage and any new 20mph site will be put onto the map before enforcement takes place.
Concerns
Enforcement will be considered in areas where communities have raised concerns, collisions have occurred, or in areas where vulnerable road users and vehicles mix – for example, near schools.
Any requests for enforcement will be assessed using GoSafe’s enforcement criteria and where appropriate, enforcement sites will be established.
People who are pulled over doing more than 20mph in these areas could face a minimum fine of £100 and three penalty points.
GoSafe will also work with highways authorities to ensure that signage is appropriate, any Traffic Regulation Orders are correct, and that roads are not being considered as part of the 20mph exceptions review.
A GoSafe spokesperson said: “Six months following the legislation change, enforcement will now be considered in all areas where there is evidence of road safety risk.
“The first response to 20mph speeding concerns will still be to use Operation Ugain, but we will assess any emerging concerns in these areas as we do in any other speed limit from 18th March 2024.
“The combination of engagement and enforcement has always been used by the partnership. Engagement is continually prioritised to support behaviour change to make our roads safer for everyone. Enforcement is used when it is justified and where engagement is not appropriate.
“Enforcement is always done in the right place, at the right time, for the right reason, to make our roads safer.”
Response
Assistant Chief Constable Trudi Meyrick, Roads Policing Lead for Wales said:“Introducing enforcement in new 20mph areas is the next step of our engagement-led approach.
“We have continued to review driver behaviour and the response to the change in default speed limit, whilst engaging with communities across Wales with Operation Ugain.
“Enforcement will be used proportionately and fairly. We’ll continue to engage with people across Wales and we’re confident that a proportionate level of enforcement can now be used to keep us moving towards achieving safer roads.”
The controversial default speed limit has been met with fierce opposition in Wales and a petition calling for it to be reversed has reached over 467,000 signatures – the most in Senedd history.
The Welsh Government has said that cutting the limit to 20mph will protect lives and save the NHS in Wales £92m a year.
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but but but but Tory party said it was OK to ignore……
Top tip. If the sign says 20, guess what the speedo should say.
There is no need for those who wish to ignore the speed limit to worry. I have been in correspondence with GoSafe about how our local road with access to 3 schools and formally electronically signposed to 20m at school start and leave times has become a race track. It seems that no, they are not planning to monitor it and no there will be no 20MPH repeater signs to remind drivers. The road is illuminated so everybody knows that the speed limit must be 20mph so repeaters are not required. So step on the gas Guys!
They can’t afford the cost of enforcing it. Absolute complete waste of millions of pounds, another crazy ideological idea from the social labour party. Guess what, they reduced the budget for education so that they could pay for the 20mph change, that they can’t enforce. I think Drakeford should go back to school, maybe resit his business and mathematics??
Drakeford has been a prehistoric dragon holding back Wales driving it back to the dark ages.
That’s where he belongs
No one will remember him in time.
His legend crushed by arrogance & self delusion. Only to find him delirious lost in his world in an allotement talking to the birds & the flowers about how ‘once he was great’. Bye MD sadly you won’t be missed.
Notice his parting shot in the Covid enquiries? “Using WhatsApp was against the rules – but the rules were wrong”. Also, how can you “lose” WhatsApps? You have to “delete” WhatsApps!
“Guess what, they reduced the budget for education so that they could pay for the 20mph change”.
And you’ve got proof of that have you? And by the way, a right wing rant on a Facebook page doesn’t constitute proof.
Please, the Communist Labour Party!
I often see a speed camera out and about around here, in many speed limits. They park it in a 20, where they once parked it as a 30. Job jobbed.
You do need to worry. I’ve had 2 convictions plonkers of overtaking me in 20mph zones from my own dashcam footage. 😄😄
Nice one!
So to be clear, you are actively encouraging people to break the law?
They also said that the vaccine stopped covid and that it was proven to protect us and perfectly safe……..just because a law is there, doesn’t make it morally correct. Outside Schools, absolutely 20mph, but there are many roads that 20mph is just stupid. How many people signed the pointless petition? Was it 500,000? Isn’t that more signatures than those who voted for Welsh Labour who had it in their mandate?
Said what where? Vaccines limited the spread and saved millions of lives world wide and lowered the risk greatly of long covid effects. Yes, it is evidenced, by real qualified people not kooks, yes a few people can have reactions to vaccines, it has always been the case. About the petition. I find it an interesting case for peer pressure and manipulation (Tory party HQ are known for it). No one would be spreading this to sign maliciously, oh wait, they did. No one would be egging people on motoring web sites…. oh, they did. Only people in Wales can… Read more »
So to be clear, are you an anti-vaxxer?
Also, what is the relevance of the Covide vaccine to the 20mph speed limit in any case?
“Outsise Schools, absolutely 20mph”
OK, so how far from schools exactly? Please remember that most school children don’t live immediately outside their school, they would be expected to walk some distance to and from school – so how far from schools should the 20mph speed limit apply? Half mile? One mile? Two miles? Three miles?
Incidentally, in our local authority we had 20mph outside schools long before the introduction of the default 20mph speed limit. And guess what? They still had to put speed bumps outside of schools to discourage speeding motorists – so don’t give me your ‘look-at-me-I’m-so-responsible-as-I-believe-in-20mph-outside-of-schools’ shtick.
Isn’t strange that on these dangerous roads the high speed which vehicles travel at is astonishing! The UK government speed limit site undertook research on all 30mph speed limit zones in the UK and found that the average speed recorded was 22.9mph. This high speed was frightening to pedestrians and other road users ? Now the WG having had access to this data decided that the most appropriate solution would be to reduce all 30mph speed limit zones to 20mph thus ensuring that frightening speeds such as 30mph would no longer be an issue.
On free flowing 30 mph roads 50% of drivers exceed the limit, which exactly agrees my observation on a downhill stretch of main road that was 30mph at the end of my residential street.
https://roadsafetygb.org.uk/news/50-of-drivers-exceed-speed-limit-on-30mph-roads/
Must be loads of accidents then are there? Thought not.
Two years ago a 70 yr old with a shopping trolley was mown down on a sunny summer evening and flown by air ambulance to Stoke on the stretch I mention. So yes plenty of “accidents”.
What is your point exactly?
If we were to follow your logic (there aren’t many accidents therefore speed limits aren’t necessary) there wouldn’t be ANY speed limits.
Typical motorist, determined to carry on with your war against pedestrians.
Good!
Election is coming 470.000 votes this will be interesting.
Welsh Labour won’t be worried….the majority of people in the valleys blindly vote Labour, always have, always will. That’s how they got away with the 20 mph. It was in their manifest and people didn’t read the manifest. Funny how nobody has mentioned Cardiff Airport and how much money the Welsh government is wasting the Welsh peoples money on a failing, carbon creating, business. But oh no, its the farmers who feed us who are the carbon criminals!! Honestly, these people in power are really, really shocking.
How many turned out at the protest? Did the councillor come down from Sunderland to make up the 60 or so people that protested at the Senedd?
See the farmers protest? That was massive, with less people signing the petition. Stands at 15k at the mo.
Not really, most of those who signed don’t live in Wales so therefore don’t have a vote.
And I bet they still vote labour in wales 470000 voted to not change the speed limits
Do we have any evidence where they are all from and who signed it cos Facebook or something seen on a motoring forum or your grandson suggested you sign this and how many times you can sign it?
I voted for Labour, it was in the manifesto, does this mean that my vote does not count if a Sunderland councillor can lead a campaign in Wales to belittle this via a petition?
And before anybody the fines into the coffers of the Welsh government WRONG THEY GO INTO THE COFFERS IN LONDONIUM
Ridiculous idea and dangerous.
Long stretches of pointless 20mph will result in drivers speeding in other areas and taking daft risks to make up time be it real or perceived.
Ah! Now we have Drakeford/Waters’ COSH! But they claim that we are “accepting” their anti- motorist war!
Fantastic, about time. Roads feel much safer since the introduction of the new limit, particularly when I’m out on foot or bike, far calmer. Still the odd idiot so would be nice to see these individuals dealt with.
That’s fine within housing estates and near schools but some of the stretched around here are ridiculous particularly at 2am in the morning
About time, very few keep to the limit on my street, ignoring the school and all the kids.
Lol, most people have forgotten this exists 😂 you know they have when you only have to keep to it when theres a learner driver in front. You can go 20 on bike and the truth is they don’t police 30mph so how in the world can they do 20.