Birmingham says 20mph will be the standard on all local roads

Birmingham is to become England’s first 20mph city by lowering speed limits on the majority of its roads. In plans updated last week, the Liberal Democrat, Green Party and independent-led council said it wanted all routes except A-roads to become 20mph zones.

The policy aims to reduce speed limits on all local routes except for major A-roads.

The council states the policy is designed to ensure cars “no longer dominate street life” around homes and schools, actively prioritising pedestrians, cyclists, and local residential communities.

This decision coincides with Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s push for devolution, a political move that could grant more local authorities the autonomy to implement similar localised traffic policies.

Safety Justification: West Midlands Road Safety Commissioner Mat MacDonald has strongly backed the measure, calling it an “evidence-based measure that saves lives”. He pointed to Wales’ recent implementation of a default 20mph limit, which resulted in roughly 100 fewer deaths or serious injuries on relevant routes during its first year.

Opponents have laughably labelled the transition as an “anti-motorist policy” that will unfairly punish drivers’ rights to kill or seriously injure other road users and disrupt travel across a city historically known as Britain’s ‘motor capital’, whatever that means.

While other English cities like Bristol already feature a high density of 20mph roads (86% of its network), Birmingham’s approach marks the first time an English city has committed to a sweeping, city-wide standard limit rather than a staggered rollout.