Protest Group Calls for Urgent Review of 20mph after Statistics Appear to Show Increase in Deaths and Serious Injuries since Implementation
A Welsh protest group has called for an urgent review of the Welsh Government’s analysis after the Welsh Government claimed casualties from crashes in Wales had reduced since the 20mph implementation. The group analysed official accident data from Welsh Police forces between 2022 and 2024 and revealed some very different findings, which are in the attached PDF.
This data appears to show an increase in the number of people who have been killed or seriously injured on Welsh roads.
The Leader of the United Voices Senedd Protest Group, Annette Jones, said the analysis left serious questions to answer and called for an urgent review:
“Whilst the report is true with the data combined, in isolation there has been an increase in the numbers of people who have either been killed or seriously injured on 20mph roads for the same period.
“The reduction in the numbers at 30mph may be due to the fact that there are now less roads restricted to 30mph resulting in less accidents. It could therefore be argued that the problem overall has remained the same, but it could also be argued that it has moved the problem from the 30mph roads to the 20mph roads. The question is does this make 20mph roads less safe? Whatever the answer, we need an urgent review, and fast.”
Mark Baker, the man behind the 20mph petition which saw nearly half a million signatories calling for the blanket 20mph policy to be scrapped, said:
“I was sceptical about the Government’s recent statement anyway, because other studies in Bath, Northern Ireland and Spain showed similar results to the figures above. This is not surprising, a report published in the BMJ this week also shared similar findings on 20mph.
“The analysis of Wales police force data shows a clear increase in deaths and serious injuries since the introduction of 20mph. It appears that the Welsh Government is so hell-bent on 20mph they have remained ignorant to the fact that nearly half a million Welsh voters have made it clear they object to the policy.
“If this analysis is correct, they are now wilfully ignoring extra deaths and serious injuries too. What will it take for this vanity project to be declared a failed experiment?
“Wales’ Government should have paid attention to their electorate, to the data from previous studies, and to the BMJ before alienating drivers and depriving Wales of £36 million useful spending.
“Meanwhile, our roads in Wales remain unsafe, full of potholes and unfit for purpose. My heartfelt condolences go to the families and loved ones of all the people killed and to those injured on Welsh roads since last September. Let’s hope the review currently being undertaken delivers some common sense.”
