Wales 20mph: We want speed limit, say Ceredigion villagers

Their calls came before Wales’ new Transport Secretary Ken Skates said there would be changes to the existing default 20mph speed limit in built-up areas of Wales.

Mr Skates said the 20mph zones should be targeted at schools, hospitals and nurseries.

He said there was support for the limit in areas where children and the elderly were “at risk”, with the “voice of citizens at the heart of all we do”.

Speaking before Mr Skates’s comments, people in the two Ceredigion villages described their experiences of the A487 between Machynlleth and Aberystwyth.

Alison Swanson, a community councillor who has lived in Furnace for most of her life, said she remembered three fatal accidents in the area.

She said pedestrians often felt at risk when walking to the church or the village hall, known as the “Iron Room”, where many activities are held each week, including fitness classes.

“When you’re walking from the hall quite often people have had their exercise mats clipped,” she said.

“And if you’ve got two lorries coming at 40mph, that’s quite a speed through here. You basically have to go into the hedge.”