The findings, published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, analyzed data from before and after the 20mph limit was introduced on 76 streets in Belfast city center in 2016. Comparisons with roads in the surrounding area and elsewhere in Northern Ireland which maintained the 30pm limit. or 40 p.m. showed that there were no “statistically significant differences” in the number of accidents, casualty rates or average traffic speed. However, the researchers found that roads with a 20mph limit saw a reduction in traffic. The report’s authors, including Professor Ruth Hunter of Queen’s University Belfast and Dr Ruth Jepson of the University of Edinburgh, noted that their research was smaller in scale than some other studies on the same topic. The report recommended that 20mph limits could be combined with other measures such as driver education, CCTV and police communications to “facilitate an ambitious culture change, moving populations away from the model that dominates the car.” The report adds that speed limits are not just a “road safety intervention” but can be “part of a fundamental reset of how we prioritize our lives – people before cars”. The report comes as schemes to reduce speed limits to 20mph have become increasingly popular in the UK and elsewhere in Europe. They aim to reduce the number of road accidents and injuries and bring regions closer to their climate change targets. In July, members of the Senedd voted in favor of Welsh legislation to change the National Default Speed ​​Limit in Wales from 30mph to 20mph. The law affects most residential roads and other busy roads and is said to be effective from September 17, 2023. The incoming law has already faced criticism. Paul Dyer, chief executive at Cardiff Bus, is “concerned” the 20mph will add to the challenges already faced by the industry, which is struggling to recruit drivers. In England, Witney in Oxfordshire chose to become the first town in the county to have residential 20mph zones in July. According to the Oxford Mail, the county council said the emphasis is on getting drivers to adhere to the new limits through a change in attitude rather than enforcement, and that “exceeding the limit will become socially unacceptable for drivers”.