Background
The Welsh Government passed ' The Restricted Roads (20 mph Speed Limit) (Wales) Order 2022 ' on the 13th February 2022, which came into force on the 17th of September 2023. All Councils in Wales were required to implement this Welsh Government initiative.
The introduction of this legislation had a major impact on the Authority’s highway network with the majority of our restricted roads being reduced to 20 mph (by virtue of the presence of street lighting on such roads).
The Council will provide regular updates via this page as the project develops.
What stage are we at?
The Welsh Government has asked all Local Authorities to review the 20mph speed limits in their areas.
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has now received updated guidelines that will help officers to start looking into the 313 requests made during the Welsh Government’s “Listening Campaign”.
The Council has been given extra funding from the Welsh Government to begin reviewing these requests. This will involve:
- Information gathering - Geographically mapping out each request to see which routes need to be reviewed first, based on the number of requests received.
- Review and Recommendation - Reviewing each route, considering factors like journey time, the change in vehicle speeds, collision history, and more before making a recommendation to the Council to consider.
- Consultation - If the review suggests increasing the speed limit from 20mph to 30mph, there will be further discussions with the local councillor and a public consultation will begin later this financial year and continue into next year. The legal process (once all requests have been assessed) can take up to 9 months to complete prior to any changes being made to speed limit signage at sites.
Consultations
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council is required to consult on any future proposed changes to the default 20mph speed limit as part of the statutory regulatory process (through the implementation of a Traffic Regulation Order). As mentioned above, if the review suggests ay changes to the current 20mph speed limited a public consultation will be begin later this financial year.
The Council will provide further information with regards to any proposed changes or consultaions associated with the 20mph initiative via this webpage.
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