Some thoughts on the Road Safety Strategy and implementing 20mph limits.

I am, of course referring to the recently published Road Safety Strategy which notably adopts the Safe System approach to managing road safety. Within the theme of “Ensuring infrastructure is safe” it promises to “publish a new edition of the outdated ‘Setting Local Speed Limits’” .

Targets and the Safe System approach

The Road Safety Strategy is a landmark for the UK Government in declaring its acceptance of the Safe System approach to road management and road safety. It boldly and ambitiously looks for a 65% reduction in the numbers killed or seriously injured on roads by 2035, using a 2022-2024 baseline, and a 70% reduction in the number of children killed or seriously injured. While these targets purport to be for Great Britain, it is not clear where this leaves Wales and Scotland, which both have their own Road Safety Strategies (and speed limit guidance), or Northern Ireland, which is currently consulting on new speed limit guidance.

Delivering a Safe System approach successfully is key to having any chance of reaching these targets. And I am pleased that appropriate speed limits are referenced in the strategy:

Safe Speeds

Speed is one of the ‘Fatal Four’ and safe speeds are a vital pillar of the Safe System. Speed limits are designed to reduce the likelihood and impact of collisions. Local authorities are responsible for setting appropriate speed limits in their areas and the government provides comprehensive guidance to these authorities on doing so.

20mph limits as part of the Road Safety Strategy

The Road Safety Strategy does not need to specifically refer to 20mph limits. It is implicit in any Safe System approach. It is accepted internationally that “where motors mix with pedestrians and cyclists then 30km/h or 20mph should be the maximum speed limit unless a higher limit is specifically and evidentially justified”. This is as per the Stockholm Declaration resolution 11. on Speed Management (adopted by the UK Government in 2020) which is the foundation of the Welsh and Scottish adoption of 20mph as a norm.

20mph is recognised as a “survivable speed” for pedestrians/cyclists (those “valuable” road users) in an urban/village environment and features in the Chartered Institution for Highways and Transportation (CIHT) report on Progressing the UK towards Safe System Implementation.

Many local authorities are setting speed limits on local roads at 20mph, using a Safe System approach, because they have determined that the current national 30mph limit is inappropriate. Wales has set a national urban/village default speed limit of 20mph and Scotland is guiding and funding local authorities to set 20mph for most urban/village roads.

The contribution 20mph makes to reducing casualties

The data shows wide area 20mph reduces casualties on urban/village roads by some 25%. With around 50% of fatal and serious injuries (KSIs) on 30mph roads, this has the capacity to reduce total KSIs by some 10% - one sixth of the government reduction target. Let’s re-state that. By setting 20mph for most urban/village roads, GB could achieve a sixth of its 10 year target with one simple, intervention that is at the heart of a Safe System approach. If implemented by 2027 it would reduce total casualties by 150,000 and save 30,000 people from being killed or seriously injured over the period to 2035.

With such an ambitious target of a 65% reduction in KSIs it is difficult to see how UK Government could meet such a target without a default 20mph policy. Furthermore, it can be implemented quickly and cheaply. Whether it is done by national legislation, as in Wales or by national standards, as in Scotland, is less critical. But it must be implemented quickly for the Road Safety Strategy to have any credibility or impact.

The old guidance is dead - What next?

So what can local Highway Authorities do in this period when the “previous guidance is dead”, but the new guidance has not yet been published?

With 20mph being one part of a completely revised guidance on all local speed limits, the new guidance may well take years to be published. That would create an interim lack of direction and progress in delivering “safe speed” in urban/village communities.

It’s urgent.  Many local authorities see the current guidance on setting local speed limits as outdated and inappropriate for societal needs in this third decade of the 21^st century. It holds them back on setting 20mph limits. Whilst many authorities have already gone beyond the guidance and implement wide-area 20mph, others may find it is a deterrent that maintains the dominance of 30mph as a norm.

Well, first it’s clear that 20mph will soon be the norm or default for urban/village roads. Not only is that embedded within any Safe System, lower speeds will make other interventions more effective.

With regard to the details on how the new 20mph guidance that adheres to a Safe System approach may look, then there is no need to predict or wait for the new guidance. In Wales and Scotland, guidance on setting 20mph as an urban/village norm based on a Safe System approach already exists and is winning International Road Safety Awards and saving lives.

Both sets of guidance in Wales and Scotland start from the presumption that 20mph should be set for most roads in built-up areas and then detail either the road features which mandate inclusion or the features whose absence may allow exclusion to be considered. In both cases these refer to presence of housing, retail, education, community facilities and composition of users.

It is inconceivable that new guidance from DfT as it applies to urban/village 20mph speed limits will be materially different from that used in the Scottish or Welsh guidance.

Local Highway Authorities should, therefore, immediately feel able to progress their 20mph adoption by using the government endorsed Safe System approach and the guidance developed for Scotland. This will help prevent a stalling of this important element of the Road Safety Strategy. The Scottish guidance, which could be the template for English local authorities to use, is:

The Road Assessment Criteria

From June 2022 Road authorities began assessing their 30mph road network to ascertain roads which are appropriate for a lower speed limit of 20mph. To apply a level of consistency when assessing their road network, the following road criteria was created and was used by all road authorities.

Identifying any of the following place criteria on a road with a speed limit of 30mph will give an indication that the road is appropriate for a reduced speed limit of 20mph. Several factors should be considered when making the assessment which include - but are not restricted to the following:

1) Is the road within 100 m walk of any educational setting e.g. Early years, primary, secondary, further & higher education.

2) Does the number of residential and/or retail premises fronting the road (on one or both sides) exceed 20 over a continuous road length of between 400 – 600 m.

3) Other key buildings which attract members of the public should also be considered.

4) Is the road within 100 m walk of an area of public interest such as a community centre, place of worship, sports facility (including playparks), hospital, GP, or health centre.

5) Does the composition of road users imply a lower speed of 20mph which will improve the conditions and facilities for vulnerable road users and other mode shift. (build capacity by reflecting on future delivery plans such as active and sustainable travel, consider existing and future levels of vulnerable road users)

6) Will the road, surrounding environment and the community be improved by a lower speed limit of 20mph e.g. quality of life, social cohesiveness, severance, noise, or air quality, active travel)

Points to Note - The presumption is that all 30mph roads are appropriate for a lower speed limit of 20 mph. However, there will be some anomalies, where roads meet the criteria but are not appropriate and others which do not meet the place criteria but are appropriate for a 20mph speed limit. This is where local knowledge and community feedback is key to setting the most appropriate speed limit for the environment.

In general, a road suitable to remain at 30mph will typically be on A and B Class roads with little frontage activity and where people walking, wheeling, and cycling do not need to share space with motor traffic.

A minimum road length for the speed limit is suggested between 400-600 m. The length adopted will depend on the conditions at or beyond the end points.

This will build on the pioneering work done in Wales, Scotland and progressive English authorities who have already adopted a policy of wide area 20mph for built-up areas.

It’s simple, effective and cost effective. It will also need no primary or secondary legislation. Many authorities will already see what a Safe System approach means for speeds within their urban/village communities. They can proceed to setting 20mph to transform their communities in terms of the proven safety, active travel, public health, noise and air quality benefits that come from Delivering 20. Others may need the nudge from central government and we urge the minister to make an early announcement on endorsing the actions of local Highway Authorities taking the Safe Systems approach as detailed above. It would give a huge boost to the Road Safety Strategy implementation and meeting its targets.

Many are congratulating the UK Government on the ambition of the Road Safety Strategy, but also say it is heavy on consultations and light on immediate action. We look forward to an early measure of the commitment to action being strong support of the timely roll-out of 20mph as an urban/village norm.

Listen to what Transport Professionals are saying about implementing 20mph limits and whether this should be done locally or nationally

For 30,000 people it would mean the avoidance of premature death or life-changing injury.

Rod King MBE – Founder 20’s Plenty for Us

18^th January 2026