FLINTSHIRE County Council is putting forward a number of roads across the county to potentially change from 20mph, back to 30mph.

This move comes off the back of a summer of listening when local people were encouraged to have their say and provide feedback on the roads they thought should be considered for change.

The council received more than 1,000 requests relating to various stretches of road which highway officers are in the process of reviewing and assessing against the Welsh Government’s revised guidance published in July, to ensure they get the right speeds on the right roads across Wales.

For any road that the council believes is suitable for a 30mph speed limit, it must formally advertise a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO). This is a legal process that must be followed and is subject to a statutory 21-day public consultation period.

At this point, residents will have the opportunity to formally object or support the change.

Formal advertisement of qualifying requests will begin in Flintshire on November 8, 2024.

Two roads will be advertised each week until all qualifying roads are addressed. The first two roads are the A5026 Lloc and art of the A548 Bagillt/Mostyn Road.

More information on the proposals can be found here. 

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 and supporting comments received.

Cabinet member for Streetscene and Transportation, Councillor Glyn Banks, said: “We have listened to the feedback from the local community and over the coming months, there will be a number of roads advertised for a speed limit change.

"Where we are proposing a change, we will publish a statutory TRO and this will offer residents and those impacted an opportunity to comment or object before a final decision is made

“The safety of all road users is paramount and therefore not all roads requested by residents meet the criteria for a 30mph speed limit in the Welsh Government’s latest guidance.”

Ken Skates MSKen Skates MS (Image: Newsquest) The Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales Ken Skates has welcomed Flintshire County Council becoming the first local authority to announce the start of the statutory process on roads where changes to the 20mph speed limit may take place.

Whilst Flintshire Council is the first to start the TRO process, it is expected that other local authorities will follow suit over the coming months.

The Cabinet Secretary said: “I’m pleased to see councils listening to people’s views and making progress in reviewing the roads in their areas that they deem could possibly be safely changed back to 30mph.

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"Flintshire County Council is the first local authority to start the statutory process to make changes at a local level and more local authorities will follow in the coming weeks.

“I want to thank everyone who’s taken part in this listening process so far, and it’s positive to see things moving ahead

“We know there is a consensus that 20mph is the right speed on many of our roads near schools, hospitals, play areas and built-up areas. We have listened and empowered local communities to make decisions so we have the right speeds on the right roads to make 20mph a success story for Wales.”