DRIVING on Deeside's roads has become an 'absolute nightmare' since the introduction of 20mph speed limit zones, residents have claimed.

In September 2023, the majority of residential roads throughout Wales changed from being 30mph to 20mph.

This was, according to the Welsh Government, in order to help save lives - but the move was met with unprecedented backlash as over 460,000 people signed a petition calling for a U-turn to be made.

Deeside residents have been getting in touch with the Leader to tell us about their experiences of driving on the roads since the change was made.

One of those who has seen first-hand the change in his local area is Eddie Duggan, from Shotton.

He said: "On the face of it, the WAG decision to reduce the default speed limit to 20mph, has enraged motorists, I have yet to meet anyone who drives actually commend the Senedd for the implementation.

"The system of having a default 30mph speed limit has worked for decades across the whole of the UK, and when there was an issue to slow traffic down, where there is a school or hospital for instance these areas would be signposted accordingly.  Within the confines of a housing estate there are speed bumps or chicanes which reduced the speed of a vehicle.  

"As a driver in the Deeside area I can safely say that since the 20mph implementation, driving has become an absolute nightmare. For instance the roundabout in Queensferry, is now akin to playing "Russian roulette". 

"One drives on to it not knowing what speed to exit, will it be 50mph, 30mph, or 20?  So for instance one could be driving on to it at 50, reducing to 30, then seeing a sign giving way to drive at a higher speed, only to then see yet another sign ordering a reduction.  

"Another instance only a few days ago, driving to the recycling centre in Sandycroft, driving from Queensferry roundabout, 30mph, then down to 20, turn left on to the road towards the recycling centre 40mph sign, get to the bridge over the railway, just over the brow, 20mph signage."

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Mr Duggan added: "Indeed, the one road which was reduced to 20mph during the pilot scheme local to us in Deeside was Liverpool Road (between Ewloe and Buckley), this route was one of the roads which brought the government to conclude that it should make the change to 20mph. 

"Now though, that road is back to being 30mph. Unbelievable. The whole process of its implementation has been a farce."

Susan Evans, also from Deeside, said: "I'm spending too much time looking at the speedometer as the car naturally wants and needs to be in a higher gear. This is clearly unsafe as eyes should be on the road, not the car."

Kate Jones, from Hawarden, added: "Living here is like being in a permanent game of Mario Karts! Everyone going different speeds and driving recklessly through frustration.

"People are driving faster in housing estates because there’s no chance of a speeding ticket! St David’s Park/Wood Lane up to Drury is ridiculous for speeding now. 20mph is an utter joke."

Marilyn Westwood-Bate, who lives just over the border in Cheshire, said: "All roads that were 30 mph should be returned to 30 mph and school areas 20 mph.

"My husband now refuses to shop over the border into Wales due to this 20 mph speed limit. 30 was and still is a safe speed to drive. If people get caught for speeding in 30 mph area that’s fair.

"But to try and keep the speed to 20 mph in areas that stretch for sometimes a mile or longer is creating a potential problem for drivers, taking their eyes off the road frequently, to check their cars speedometer."

Amid concerns, new figures have been released this month that suggest that drivers have in fact dropped their speeds, on average, by 4mph since the introduction of the 20mph speed limits in Wales.

Transport for Wales (TfW) data recently revealed how the average speed of drivers has dropped on 20mph roads.

Road sensors measured speed from over three million vehicles across nine locations in Wales over a two week period between November and December.

Data gathered shows the average speeds on main roads dropped an average of 4mph - from 28.9mph to 24.8mph.

The Welsh Government says this provides 'clear evidence' that speeds are 'moving in the right direction'.