Rejected petition Repeal The Restricted Roads (20 mph Speed Limit) (Wales) Order 2022
A petition launched in June 2024 to “Rescind and remove the 20mph law” gained nearly 500,000 signatures and was debated in the Senedd on 22 May 2024. Despite public demand, the law was not revoked. Instead, the Welsh Government invited the public to give feedback to local councils on specific roads, with councils launching consultations to identify streets where speed limits could be reviewed and raised. This response did not meet the petition’s clear call for a full repeal.
More details
Widespread public opposition - A YouGov poll conducted in August 2024 found that 72% of Welsh residents opposed the default 20mph speed limit, with 50% strongly opposed.
Economic impact - Critics argue that the policy imposes a substantial economic burden. The Welsh Government's own research estimates that the 20mph speed limit could cost the Welsh economy £9 billion
Implementation Challenges - The rollout of the policy has been criticised for its execution. The Welsh Government allocated only £1.6 million of the £32 million budget to public communication, leading to confusion about which roads are affected. Additionally, inconsistent application across local authorities has resulted in unclear and sometimes illogical speed limit designations.
Why was this petition rejected?
There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue, or if the Petitions Committee has considered one in the last year.
The previous petition, cited, was created in September 2023 and completed in June 2024. Therefore it will not be possible to have a new petition on this matter until late June 2025. https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/245548
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards
Rejected petitions are published in the language in which they were submitted