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Wales lowers speed limit to 20 mph to cut car use and save lives (www.euronews.com)

submitted 1 year ago by Hotchpotch@beehaw.org to c/news@beehaw.org

43 comments fedilink hide all child comments

For more detailed information: https://www.gov.wales/introducing-20mph-speed-limits-frequently-asked-questions

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[–] usualsuspect191@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I'll bite. Arbitrarily lowering speed limits while still leaving the road the same means many people will drive the old speed (as that is what will "feel" right). Great if you're trying to rack up photo radar ticket income, not so great if your motives are better safety and fewer cars on the road.

[–] n2burns@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

They're not just lowering the speed limit. From the FAQ:

Will the roll out involve money being spent on speed bumps?

There is no plan to include traffic calming (including speed bumps) as part of the change to speed limits. There are other ‘softer’ measures that might be introduced, such as using buffer speed limits, removing the centre line, narrowing the carriageway visually, using planting etc.

[–] t3rmit3@beehaw.org 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

might be introduced

So no, currently they're not doing anything else.

[–] n2burns@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Technically, they aren't doing anything. This is "just" an announcement if you're going to be pedantic.

Waterloo, Ontario, Canada is going through a similar process of lowering speed limits in residential areas. The planning staff said they needed the speed lowered so they could implement these traffic calming measures, otherwise the speed limit would be higher than the street design can accommodate. Obviously, the devil is in the details, but it's a good and important first step.