BOTH FLINTSHIRE and Wrexham councils have provided updates on what is happening/going to happen to 20mph roads in the counties over the coming weeks and months.

The controversial speed limit was officially introduced in Wales last September and saw the majority of residential roads changed from 30mph to 20mph.

Since then, it has been a consistent topic of national debate both out on the streets and in the Senedd.

September 17 marked the first anniversary of the speed limit being rolled out across the country.

It has led to a protest petition signed by hundreds of thousands of people which smashed Senedd records, but there is also data suggesting it is working to improve road safety in Wales. 

One of the biggest concerns, especially in north east Wales, is the exempted roads - or rather, the lack of them. 

In Flintshire and Wrexham, there are under 30 roads which remained 30mph as part of the exemption scheme. In comparison, the city of Swansea has well over 100 roads that are exempt from the speed limit. 

The Welsh Government has pledged "targeted change" to the policy, and has issued local authorities with new guidance which should make it simpler for them to exempt more roads from the 20mph limit. 

Now, both Flintshire and Wrexham Councils have provided The Leader with updates on where they are currently at with the 20mph speed limits.

Flintshire Council told us that it is continuing to 'access requests' for roads to be reverted to 30mph speed limits.

Chief officer for Streetscene and Transportation, Katie Wilby, said: “Flintshire County Council is continuing to assess requests for roads to revert to a 30mph speed limit, following the Welsh Government's listening programme announcement."

She added: "Formal advertisement of qualifying requests will begin on November 8, 2024. Two roads will be advertised each week until all qualifying roads are addressed, with a statutory consultation period of 21 days.

“Consultation periods will not overlap with the Christmas holidays, so any remaining roads will be advertised in January 2025. Once advertised, each proposal will be open to public feedback and formal objections.

"After the consultation, all responses will be carefully reviewed. The length of this review process will depend on the number and complexity of objections received.

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“Decisions on whether to implement the 30mph limits will be made in line with the council’s approved delegation process.”

Wrexham Council added that it was 'currently reviewing the public’s responses' to the Welsh Government’s listening phase and 'assessing them in line with Welsh Government guidance'.

A statement added: "This Welsh Government listening phase took place between May 2024 and September 2024. This feedback was required in order to assess the changes requested against the published revised guidance on setting 30mph speed limits on restricted roads.

"In Wrexham, a total of 440 email responses were received as part of the public consultation asking for the public view on the 20mph roads. Of these; 207 were general comments against the 20mph scheme in its entirety, 152 provided individual locations they wished to be increased back to 30mph and 54 provided numerous locations they wished to be reviewed.

"27 responses supported the 20mph limit and did not wish to see any roads revert back to 30mph."

They added: These responses are currently being reviewed and assessed in line with Welsh Government guidance. 

"In addition to the public consultation, officers have used professional knowledge and judgement for consideration of some roads. This has been supported by data held on each road (number of collisions etc.)

"Further updates will be provided once we have completed our review."