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30mph road reversals cost Wrexham Council £400,000

30mph road reversals cost Wrexham Council £400,000

Leader Live14 hours ago
The Welsh Government introduced a default 20 mph speed limit on restricted roads across Wales on September 17, 2023.
The decision was met with mass opposition and in April 2024, Welsh Government announced a review of the 20mph scheme.
Following extensive member engagement and public consultation, a list of 52 sections of highway which met the Welsh Government criteria for reversion back to 30mph was presented to the Executive Board in February 2025 - and the Executive Board approved the list in full.
In May, the B5605 Wrexham Road in Johnstown became the first road in North Wales to be reverted back to 30mph. Wrexham Council initially said it planned to have all the 52 roads reverted by the end of June.
However, in an update provided earlier last week, councillor David A Bithell, lead member for strategic transport, said he hoped the majority of roads would have been completed by August 1.
Figures from a Freedom of Information request revealed that the process of reverting roads back to 30mph cost £400,000 in total, which has been paid for by the Welsh Government.
In addition, around 400 new 30mph signs were bought by the local authority in order to complete the reversals.
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A spokesperson for Wrexham Council said: "All quotes for the 30mph contract included every aspect of the works including removal of old signs and unneeded post, erecting of new posts, signs, and traffic management, therefore we don't have individual costs for each part of the works.
"A majority of the old 30mph signs we originally removed were either damaged, faded or didn't meet the current reflectivity standards, therefore we needed to purchase approximately 350-400 new 30mph signs.
"The overall cost of the 30mph works will be around £400,000 once everything is completed.
"All costs for the 30mph reversion have been funded by Welsh Government grants."
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