DATA ANALYSTS studied a road in Wrexham to assess the impact of the new 20mph limit - and say the results are "astounding". 

Public health analyst, Agilysis, studied a 2.5km stretch of the A5152 Chester Road in Wrexham, as well 58km of other roads in the county, as part of the study. 

In Wrexham, they found that the median average speed of the vehicles studied was 19.6mph. Across the 10 Welsh areas and 491km of roads studies, average speeds dropped by 2.9mph from the week before the new 20mph limit was installed. Wrexham saw the greatest drop in average speed (3.7mph).

The Leader: A report based on the study states: "The drop in average speeds should provide incredible safety benefits to pedestrians and cyclists as well as an expected improvement in air quality to all residents and road users."

Sample analysis of the A5152 Chester Road showed that journey times increased by 45-63 seconds along the two 2.5km route. 

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Independent research was possible through the use of connected vehicle GPS, which allows for a rapid analysis of traffic data within 24 hours. The sample used over 25 million vehicle movements on the Monday-Friday, 6am-6pm periods in the two weeks either side of the change. 

Richard Owen, Agilysis CEO and the report's author, said: "The immediate impact on traffic speeds in Wales has been astonishing, and far greater than many would have predicted. Welsh drivers are, on the whole, accepting lower speed limits and have changed their behaviour accordingly.

"There will remain some drivers who choose to break the limit by significant amounts but the drop in speeds on the fastest urban roads has been marked."

However, the general reaction to the new speed limit remains hostile - with the petition calling for it be scrapped being signed by more than 430,000 people. 

Hundreds of people attended a protest march in Cardiff on Saturday, and more are planned. 

The Welsh Government remains defiant on the new law - saying it will ultimately save lives and the NHS millions of pounds due to a reduction in the number of road traffic collisions.