A NATIONAL protest opposing the Welsh Government’s default 20 miles-per-hour speed limit visited Abergavenny on Sunday, September 15, around 2pm, as they travelled by convoy from North to South.

Protesters from United Voices, a Senedd Lobby group, joined a convoy over two days (September 14 and 15), starting the second day at Chirk Truck Stop, Oswestry at 5am, and finishing in Narberth, Pembrokeshire. 

Abergavenny’s Morrisons car park and the Fairfield car park were one of their stops along the way, to take a short break and allow like-minded supporters to meet them, including members of another protest group; Action Against Unfair ULEZ. 

The group has gained a lot of support opposing the controversial default speed limit. One avid supporter, Martin Turner, said: “Yesterday and today we’ve been travelling around Wales in a convoy, all the way up the West Coast, along the North Coast, down the East Coast, and today we’re finishing off by travelling across the South Coast of Wales.

“We’re protesting against the 20 miles-per-hour blanket speed-ban that the Welsh Government has imposed. The important thing to note is that 469,571 people took the time to sign a petition to rescind this blanket ban. The great Welsh public are frustrated and angry the Welsh Government is not listening to them, and they feel ostracised by the Welsh Government.”

The new speed limit was introduced in September 2023, and was initially trialled in eight communities, including Abergavenny. Wales became one of the first countries in the world to pass a law changing the speed limit on restricted roads to 20mph.

The Welsh Government (WG) says it believes the speed limit is right and it will save lives and reduce collisions and injuries. However, many Welsh residents believe this is not the case.

Annette Jones, organiser of the convoy, said: “This convoy is so much more than just driving a little bit slower! United Voices may have been set up because of the implementation of the default 20mph speed limit in Wales, but the group soon evolved and expanded, as it served as a turning point for many people throughout Wales to come together, and begin to ask questions of some of the decisions the WG has taken in recent years, and continues to make. 

“The WG promised the people of Wales that this legislation would save lives, save the NHS money and improve air quality. However, the data so far does not appear to support this.” 

Annette questioned if the WG has been examining the data thoroughly. She says the speed limit reduction has increased road collisions and had no impact on air quality. She said: “The first six months of police road collision data, published by the WG, appears to show an increase in death and serious injuries in total, across all roads combined. 

“As for the promised environmental benefits, the WG’s document ‘Introducing 20mph speed limits: FAQs’ says ‘Transport for Wales published the 20mph phase one air quality monitoring report in May 2024. The data shows no material effect on local air quality to date.’”

The convoy’s organiser also questioned the economic impact the speed limit has had on Welsh residents. She said: “The WG has estimated that implementing the 20mph legislation in Wales has cost the Welsh tax-paying-public £33 million and will come at a cost to the Welsh economy of billions of pounds.” 

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “The latest data shows that collisions on local roads have reduced significantly. We will continue to monitor the long term trend but things are heading in the right direction.

"We also recognise some roads should revert back to 30mph, which is precisely what will happen as a result of our review."

The WG added that there is further information online.