The ‘dangerous’ M4 section that’s still 50mph three years after the Welsh Government said it needed to be fixed
A 50mph speed limit along a stretch of the M4 which was only supposed to be in place for a year and a half looks set to remain for the foreseeable future. In December, 2020, we reported how the “temporary” measures were introduced from M4 motorway junction 45 at Ynysforgan, to junction 46 at Llangyfelach[1]. Welsh ministers said at the time that traffic needed to be restricted in the area of the motorway because of the likelihood of danger to the public or of serious damage to the road”, due to the structural condition of the safety barrier in the central reservation.
The maximum duration of the order was 18 months, and it was introduced after an operational risk assessment was conducted, following a number of reported incidents along the area. In November, 2019, we reported how a four-vehicle crash closed junction 45 westbound for several hours, causing eight-mile tailbacks. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter[3].[2]
But the Welsh Government has now revealed that the matter is now being reviewed, with the outcome of the review not coming until the middle of next year.
It means there is no end in sight of the reduced speed limit for motorists who use the route. Drivers come across the 50mph signs, if you’re travelling west, just after the slip road for junction 45 joins the motorway. There are two signs, one each side of the road which are of the temporary kind, on metal A frames with sand bags weighing them down.
At that point the M4 is three lanes-wide westbound, with the inside lane acting as a crawler lane for slower moving vehicles as there is an incline at this point. Westbound traffic is alerted to the 50mph zone shortly after junction 46, with similar signs. Motorists unfamiliar with the area might be expecting some form of roadworks, with these being the sorts of signs put up temporarily for work taking place – rather than the more permanent 50mph signs we see on other stretches of the M4.
But the experience of many drivers is that, once people realise there are no roadworks, they simply speed up again. One motorist, who did not want to be named, said: “If you drive along this stretch regularly then you know there is nothing happening there and most people just ignore the signs, wrongly I guess if it’s unsafe. But there are no speed cameras, nothing happening on the road – why wouldn’t you just carry on at 70mph.
It’s not as if there is any obvious reason why it should be 50mph. “On some of the 50mph stretches of the M4 you can see why there might be a speed limit, with lots of junctions with short slip roads or tunnels etc, and they have permanent speed limit signs and speed cameras. But here, especially on the westbound side where it’s three lanes, fairly straight and no junctions in the 50mph zone, it just seems ridiculous to be trundling along at 50mph, especially if you don’t know the reasoning behind it.
Lots of people, including less regular users of this bit of the M4, probably think they just forgot to take the signs away after they did some roadworks – they certainly look like they’ve been there for a while.”
On the issue, a Welsh Government spokesman said: “We are developing a business case for a major asset renewal scheme between junctions 45 and 46 of the M4.
We are also reviewing current mitigation measures to determine if changes are needed and the review outcomes will be available in mid-2024.” Join our WhatsApp news community here[6] for the latest breaking news.
References
- ^ Llangyfelach (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ closed junction 45 westbound (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ The exact locations of mobile speed cameras in Wales for December, 2023 (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ Four people hospitalised after two crashes on same stretch of the M4 (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ Join our WhatsApp news community here (www.walesonline.co.uk)