Two further major Welsh roads could become 50mph zones.
The Welsh Government has said air pollution is too high on the stretches and it appears as if a reduced speed limit is being considered. There are already five places where 50mph zones are in place to try to improve air quality.
The latest areas being considered are the:
- A470 Coryton Interchange to Nantgarw Interchange
- M4 junction 43 Llandarcy to M4 junction 44 Lon Las
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The Welsh Government said investigations were going to "identify the most suitable actions to ensure that NO2 levels at these locations fell below the limit in the shortest possible time" but they are in a section of a Welsh Government document titled "Introducing 50mph speed limits in other areas".
The Welsh Government has a legal duty to monitor air quality and says breathing air with high levels of nitrogen dioxide )(NO2) can irritate airways, worsen diseases like asthma, cause coughing, serious illnesses like heart disease, lung cancer and increase chances of catching respiratory illnesses.
The annual mean limit for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is 40 μg/m3, and an hourly limit of 200ug/m3, not to be exceeded more than 18 times in a calendar year. Through monitoring, levels of NO2 have been identified as being above the legal limit at several locations on the Welsh Government’s motorway and trunk road network.
There are five locations on the motorway and trunk road where average speed checks are enforced. Speed limits are enforced at these 50mph zones. There are green, rather than yellow cameras.
They are:
- A494 between the Wales/England border and St David’s Interchange Deeside
- A483 between junctions 5 and 6 Wrexham
- M4 between junctions 41 and 42 Port Talbot
- M4 between junctions 25 and 26 Newport
- A470 between Upper Boat and Pontypridd
Drivers who go faster than the 50mph limit will get an advisory letter and those who travel "significantly quicker" than the 50mph speed limits can be fined.
The Welsh Government confirmed from the start of October until the end of January it had issued 40,013 advisory notices.
From the start of November until the end of January it issued 3,779 notices of intended prosecution.
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