Overview

Due to an increase in concerns about anti-social and dangerous driver behaviour, and the number of casualties amongst vulnerable road users, we plan to review all existing 40 miles per hour (mph) speed limits across Birmingham.

We intend to revoke almost all 40mph speed limits and replace them with 30mph limits. This will help:

• reduce speed
• improve road safety
• encourage walking and cycling

To take urgent and decisive action, we are working with:

• West Midlands Police
• Transport for the West Midlands
• the other Metropolitan Authorities

An informal consultation for the Birmingham area-wide 30mph speed reduction scheme took place from October to November 2023. Following this consultation, the decision was made to implement a 30mph speed limit for almost all of the locations consulted on. 

Scheme proposals

We are not proposing physical speed reduction measures or new speed cameras as part of the current project, as these would require more time and funding to deliver.

In the future, we plan to use enhanced enforcement on many of the routes. This will ensure that driver compliance with any revised speed limits is high.

The initial review recommended that the Quinton Expressway and A38 (M) Aston Expressway are exempt from the scheme. These roads are designed as urban motorways and intended for large volumes of traffic, meaning a reduction in speed would be hard to achieve.

Funding

The scheme is funded by the Clean Air Zone’s (CAZ) surplus income. This funding is limited to use on transport schemes and cannot be used for other purposes.

Page last updated: 8 April 2025