A little bit slower, a whole lot better
Just over 10 years ago, the speed limit on most of Bristol's roads was reduced to 20mph.
Residents told us that 20mph made:
- the roads feel calmer
- walking to school, work, or the shops feel safer
- cycling feel less intimidating
The changes have prevented hundreds of crashes and saved lives. Many people have been saved from the heartache of a loved one being torn away unexpectedly. Now we want to build on this success to make Bristol's roads safer for everyone.
Why 20mph?
If someone is hit by a car at 20mph, there's a good chance they'll walk away with only bumps and bruises. At 30mph, it's much more likely they'll be killed or seriously injured.
20mph limits are the safest maximum speeds on most of Bristol's roads. And the good news is that our journeys won't get longer. Congestion and junctions cause most delays, not speed limits.
Driving at 20mph won't lose you much time, but it could save someone's life.
20mph review
We want to build on the success of 20mph in Bristol and make sure everyone benefits from safer speeds where we live, learn, and work.
Following a review of every 30mph road in Bristol and a public engagement exercise that received over 5,000 responses, we identified 90 roads that would benefit from safer speeds.
These represent around 5% of our roads network, but account for around 25% of deaths and serious injuries on Bristol's roads.
Transport Committee approved progressing most of these proposals on 22 October 2026. We'll now work on finalising designs before another round of statutory consultation in the new year.