Transport minister says 20mph has divided communities and admits will be costly to put right

Welsh Government's new transport minister Ken Skates has admitted the default 20mph has left Wales more divided as he seeks to find a compromise that will improve safety and calm a drivers' rebellion. The new limit was introduced by the government last September - and has proved to be the most controversial legislation since devolution in 1999, sparking protests and petitions.

Since being appointed as minister for transport and North Wales in First Minister Vaughan Gething's new cabinet Mr Skates has made clear that change is coming, with a major revamp of the guidance. He said that whether this was "radical" change would depend on the public but he expects a significant reduction in the number of 20mph roads in Wales.

This will be welcomed by many - but not all - and Mr Skates hopes that it will help to unify people again around a policy that would seek to find the right balance on improving safety but also not alienating motorists by targeting roads that most locals don't feel should be 20mph.

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He admitted it will be costly to put right - although not as expensive as the initial £33m rollout. The minister, who replaced deputy transport minister Lee Waters last month - said Welsh Government will foot that bill.

He told North Wales Live: "There will be change that addresses the concerns that a lot of people, including half a million people who signed the petition, raised on a consistent basis. These are that there is generally universal support for 20mph being targeted in areas where there are schools, built up areas like housing estates, and outside hospitals and so-forth but in many areas routes that shouldn't have been included, were.

"We've put our hands up to say 'the guidance has to be corrected'. This will enable councils to revert back those routes that are not appropriate. Whether the change will be radical will largely depend on what people want.

"I want communities to own speed limit decisions rather than having them imposed upon them. That is why this national programme of listening is going to be so important. We want to ease out what it is that people in their communities actually want to see happen, then implement the change according to the citizens' voice.

"I imagine in some parts of Wales we will see relatively few changes and in others we will see quite a lot more but we won't know the degree of the change until we have completed that exercise, listening to people and taking stock of the routes people would like to see return to 30mph."

He will make a statement on the next steps in the Senedd next week.

On a potential timescale on implementing changes, he added: "We are working to do this as swiftly as we possibly can, I will be outlining the timeframe on Tuesday. We don't want this to go on and on. In terms of this programme focused on the 20mph policy specifically, we want to deal with this as soon as we can.

"There will be costs involved given that routes will have to revert back to 30mph with 30mph signs and the labour that goes with that. I don't feel it would be fair to place that costs on local authorities given that councils are making really tough decisions. I'm not going to say to councils that they need to find the money to make the changes.

"I don't anticipate the costs being anywhere near the cost of the rollout and we will work very closely with local authorities to make sure Welsh Government can provide that support, not just financial but assurance support so that local authorities know they are making the right decisions. It is about making sure the application is consistent and we bring back a good degree of unity, whereas currently there is discord."

Talking about the divisions it has opened up in Welsh society, he added: "I have friends and family who have signed the petition, when I speak to people close to me about the petition they generally say they want 'X,Y or Z removed'. I don't want to impose the changes, I want people to identify those routes to change so that at the end of the day we have a policy a vast majority of people can support, which not just makes roads safer but makes people feel safer on them as well. That has been one of the benefits with policy in built up areas, housing estates in particular, that people feel a little bit safer as a result of the policy.

"On both sides of the argument there are some really heated and difficult discussions that have taken place online. I have seen language used that you would expect to be used in relation to combat and wars. I just don't feel this has helped our communities, it has not helped unify people. One of the primary objectives is to make sure we bring people together."

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