The UK could see speed limits reduced to 10mph on many city roads to prevent deaths and reduce serious injuries under proposals recommended in a report highlighting the numerous safety benefits.
The Road Safety Foundation (RSF) published research suggesting that limits should be cut to this lower level on all roads surrounding schools and hospitals, as well as those near major sports, social and cultural events.
The study also recommended that single-carriageway roads, including country roads, should have a limit of no more than 20mph, a significant reduction from the current national speed limit of 60mph on Britain's single-carriageway A and B-road network.
The proposals have sparked controversy, with motoring groups dismissing them as impractical while safety advocates argue they are necessary to protect vulnerable road users.
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The Road Safety Foundation has urged the Government to lower speed limits to 10mph
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The RSF's recommendations were specifically targeted at areas with a "particular prevalence of pedestrians and/or bicyclists and/or motorcyclists" and where there is "a heightened vulnerability of pedestrians to impact and injury".
A speed of 10mph is broadly equivalent to a fast jogger or slow cyclist, highlighting how drastically the charity proposes to slow traffic in urban areas.
The report suggests that 20mph should be used in all other locations where pedestrians and cyclists or motorcyclists mix with cars, while 30mph limits should only be used on roads where there are no pedestrians or cyclists.
The RSF explained that its recommended speed limits are "evidence-based, given the laws of physics and the fragility of the human body".
However, higher speed limits would still be permitted on roads that have "fully segregated facilities for any pedestrians or bicyclists" and roads that have no T-junctions or crossroads, such as some dual carriageways, including motorways.
The charity did acknowledge that "translating these findings into policy and practice is complex". The proposals have drawn sharp criticism from motoring groups, with Hugh Bladon, of the Alliance of British Drivers, stating that the concept of 10mph limits was "so ridiculous it is simply laughable".
"If you ban all motorised transport, you might reduce deaths and injury a bit, but we should remember that more people were being killed and injured in the days before motorised transport, by horses and their carriages. It might be better to ban people from walking or cycling where there is any form of motorised transport," he told The Times.
Bladon went further, suggesting that "The Road Safety Foundation is clearly not fit for purpose."
The speed reductions would see cars travel no more than 20mph
PAThe implementation of such low speed limits would have significant implications for journey times. If the 20mph limit were applied to single carriageways currently set at 60mph, journey times on these roads could potentially triple.
Critics argued that making drastic reductions would be impractical and could face substantial public resistance, similar to what has been seen with other reduced speed limit initiatives.
Dr Suzy Charman, executive director of the Road Safety Foundation, defended the proposals, saying: "We have a clear idea of the speeds [that] would be required to prevent most road deaths and serious injuries on Britain's roads."
"We are not saying that all speeds or speed limits should be set to these speeds, rather that infrastructure needs to be improved or speeds reduced to ensure travelled speeds are better aligned with human tolerances to crash forces."
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The charity has called for single carriageways to see speed limits reduced from 60mph to 20mph
PAThe controversy echoes the public backlash seen in Wales, which in September 2023 became the first UK nation to introduce a default speed limit of 20mph. According to YouGov polling, nearly two-thirds of Welsh people objected to the policy.
