A 74-year-old tourist has been left frustrated after receiving his first ever speeding ticket on a Welsh road that may soon change back to a 30mph limit. 🚗
Martin Toms, a retired salesman from Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, was caught driving at 31mph in a 20mph zone on the A548 at Greenfield during a day trip to North Wales in March.
Mr Toms and his wife Wendy had been staying in Chester and ventured into Wales to view the Duke of Lancaster ship, a former passenger vessel beached at Llannerch-y-Mor Wharf near Mostyn, Flintshire.
“I have had a clean licence all my life and I am now 74 years old. I have never knowingly broken a speed limit or had an accident in all that time,” Mr Toms said.
“I find this very annoying and even more so because the road could be back at 30mph in a few weeks, which in my view is the correct speed for that section.”
The pensioner explained that while he noticed the 20mph limit in built-up areas like Flint, he assumed the less developed stretch where he was caught would be a 30mph zone.
“Given that it was not built up and there are no schools here I assumed I was on a 30mph road. I saw the camera sign – although the camera itself it quite hidden – but I checked my speedometer and thought I was within the limit threshold,” he said.
Mr Toms has paid £95 for a three-hour speed awareness course but remains frustrated by the situation, especially as Flintshire council has confirmed this location is on the list under review following a Welsh Government decision to revert hundreds of roads across Wales back to 30mph this spring and summer.
Go Safe, who manage speed enforcement in Wales, stated: “Until any change is confirmed and implemented by the Local Authority, drivers are required to comply with the posed 20mph speed limit.”
“I’ve certainly nothing against the Welsh people but I’ve something against the people who brought in this limit. I know friends who’ve also been fined on 20mph roads in Wales and say they are concerned about going back,” Mr Toms added.
