London Mayor Sadiq Khan has significantly increased 20mph speed limits on roads under his control, raising them from 50 miles in 2021 to 166 miles by March this year. Critics argue that this initiative is part of Labour's "war on motorists," and the expansion includes a controversial rise in the number of drivers caught by speed cameras enforcing these new limits. Tory shadow transport minister Greg Smith has condemned the move, saying it makes driving in central London difficult and urging the government to let people choose their own modes of travel.
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Lord Khan, the Labour mayor for London, has more than tripled the number of miles subject to 20mph speed limits on roads under his control.
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Khan → see → control
Figures reveal that in 2021 there were just 50 miles of 20mph zones on roads controlled by Transport for London (TfL), which the Labour peer chairs.
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peer → reveal → which
But this has jumped to 166 miles as of March this year, according to figures obtained by the Mail under Freedom of Information laws.
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this → jump → laws
It means nearly half of roads across Greater London – an area of 600 square miles which borders the Home Counties – under Lord Khan’s control are now 20mph zones.
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which → mean → control
He has control over around 360 miles of highways across the region.
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He → have → region
Critics said the disclosure was the latest proof of Labour’s ‘war on motorists’ and comes amid planned new laws, also revealed in today's Mail, which critics say could see new toll roads spring up across the country.
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roads → say → country
It lays bare the astronomical rise of 20mph zones across Greater London, which has become a blueprint for their rollout as the default maximum limit on residential roads across swathes of England.
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which → lay → England
Before being lowered to 20mph, most were 30mph roads.
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most → lower → mph
The rollout is part of Lord Khan’s ‘Vision Zero’ initiative, which aims to eliminate all deaths and serious injuries on London’s roads.
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which → aim → roads
Figures reveal that in 2021 there were just 50 miles of 20mph zones on roads controlled by Lord Khan, but this jumped to 166 miles as of March this year
When roads controlled by town halls are included, more than half of highways across Greater London now have 20mph limits, with several cities following suit
Tory shadow transport minister Greg Smith said the latest figures were a 'sadly predictable chapter in Labour’s war on motorists'
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figures → reveal → motorists
When roads controlled by town halls are included, more than half of highways across Greater London now have 20mph limits.
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half → control → limits
But they have become controversial amid growing numbers of drivers being ensnared by speed cameras enforcing the new lower limits.
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they → become → limits
These include celebrities such as crime author Lynda La Plante, who pleaded guilty in August to breaking the 20mph speed limit five times in Kingston-upon-Thames between November 2025 and April 2026.
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who → include → November
Luther star Sir Idris Elba, who had been driving his moped at 28mph on Chelsea Embankment, was also famously caught out by the capital’s legion of 20mph speed traps.
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who → drive → traps
Tory shadow transport minister Greg Smith said: ‘Having already made driving in the centre of London utterly miserable thanks to endless cycle lanes, 20mph zones and uncapped roadworks, the greater expansion of 20mph zones in London is the next, sadly predictable chapter in Labour’s war on motorists.
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expansion → say → motorists
They should just let people choose how they travel.'
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they → let → ?
It comes on top of a string of charges piled on drivers by Lord Khan’s administration in recent years, including a huge expansion of the £12.50-a-day Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) charge for older cars.
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It → come → cars
He has also hiked the daily Congestion Zone to up to £21 and introduced new river crossing tolls, including for use of the newly built Silvertown Tunnel and historically free Blackwall Tunnel.
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He → hike → Tunnel
Last month it also emerged he is raking in more than £750 an hour from bus lane fines after the cash he's netted from them rocketed 400 per cent.
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he → emerge → them
While there is evidence 20mph limits reduce drivers’ average speed, motorists complain they are increasingly being introduced on roads where they are not needed and that the growing number has created confusion, catching out otherwise law-abiding drivers.
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number → be → drivers
Figures obtained from police forces by the Mail in July revealed drivers ensnared by speed cameras in 20mph zones across the country soared from 21,125 in 2023 to 127,915 last year – a staggering 500 per cent jump.
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drivers → obtain → 127,915
Data from 22 police forces found nearly 250,000 motorists in total were caught.
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motorists → find → total
The biggest increases in drivers being caught were in Labour-run areas, sparking accusations that the party has been treating drivers like ‘cash cows’.
Speeding fines raise tens of millions of pounds annually and are paid to the Treasury, including on TfL controlled roads.
A TfL spokesman said: 'The evidence is clear that 20mph speed limits save lives, with TfL’s latest long-term research showing a 34 per cent reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on borough roads following the introduction of 20mph schemes.'
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research → catch → schemes
The Aporia
