3. Will the First Minister make a statement on investment in Welsh road infrastructure? OAQ(5)0546(FM)

We have a projected spend of over £700 million on improving and adding to our existing road infrastructure across Wales. That’s in addition to funding held in reserves for the M4 project.

Thank you, First Minister. The public inquiry into the M4 and the route decided on by the Welsh Government is well under way. The Welsh Government’s original published proposals for the M4 black route also included de-motorwaying the existing stretch of motorway between Magor and Castleton, with the possible creation of cycle lanes, bus lanes and speed restrictions. Is this still the Welsh Government’s intention and is this being considered by the public inquiry, given that de-motorwaying could itself have a negative impact on journey times for many of my constituents, many of whom would still continue to rely on the existing piece of road, regardless of whether or not the black route is chosen?

Given that there’s a public inquiry ongoing, it wouldn’t be wise for me to comment on that. However, the Welsh Government’s evidence is of course public and open to examination. It’s hugely important that the inquiry is able to consider all evidence before making a recommendation.

Anyone who regularly travels between north and south knows that it’s not a pleasant experience to say the least. Unfortunately, the most practical way of travelling across Wales for very many people is by car, and there have been no significant improvements to the main road linking the north and south of our country since the days of Ieuan Wyn as Deputy First Minister. What work is being done by your Government to analyse which improvements are needed to the A470 in order to improve this key transport route that links our nation? If the answer is ‘none’ or ‘not much’, will you commit to carrying out this study and to cost any improvements required in full? I would be willing to bet that we are talking about a relatively small sum compared with the investment intended for the M4.

Nid wyf yn derbyn yr awgrym mai dim ond y car sydd ar gael; mae’r gwasanaeth trên wedi gwella ers amser—ers blynyddoedd. Ar un adeg, pan ddechreuodd y lle hwn, nid oedd yn bosibl mynd o’r gogledd i’r de ar y trên; roedd yn rhaid newid yn yr Amwythig. Nid oedd modd mynd lan heb newid trenau. Mae hynny wedi newid; mae trên nawr bob dwy awr yn mynd i lawr. Mae’r awyren, wrth gwrs, yn mynd lawr hefyd ddwywaith y dydd a lan ddwywaith y dydd. Ac hefyd ynglŷn â’r A470, fe welsom ni bethau yn gwella o ran ffordd osgoi Cwmbach-Llechryd ym Maesyfed a’r newidiadau a ddigwyddodd yn Christmas Pitch yn sir Frycheiniog, Dolwyddelan hefyd i Bont yr Afanc, a’r newidiadau yn ardal Cross Foxes ar yr A470. So, rydym wedi gweld gwelliannau sylweddol ar yr heol honno ers blynyddoedd. Ond mae yna gynllun gennym—cynllun ‘pinch-point’ os y gallaf ei alw’n hynny—er mwyn delio â rhai o’r problemau sy’n dal i fod yna. Wrth gwrs, i rywun fel minnau sydd yn dod lawr o’r gogledd o Gaernarfon trwy Machynlleth ac Aberystwyth i Ben-y-bont ar Ogwr, roedd yn bleser mawr i weld y gwelliannau hollbwysig yng Nglandyfi—rhan o’r heol a oedd yn beryglus dros ben am flynyddoedd mawr, ond mae’r heol nawr wedi cael ei gwella yn fawr iawn.

First Minister, yesterday’s report by the British Heart Foundation underlined the links between roads policy and health outcomes. The fact that 42 per cent of people in Wales are physically inactive, leading to long-term ill health and costs to the health service, is directly related to the decline in active travel over many years. When future roads are considered, will the First Minister make sure that interventions to encourage and prioritise public transport and to build cycle design into the road infrastructure are at the heart of considerations?

Yes. I cannot stand here and preach from a position of strength in terms of inactivity, I’m afraid, but what I can say is that the vision that was shown on what was the M4—what is now the A48 at Britton Ferry—in terms of the cycle route that exists over the bridge was incredibly visionary at the time. We’ve seen it rolled out, for example, at the Church Village bypass. When that was built, that had a cycle path running more or less alongside it, and we would expect that where new road schemes are in place that there should be an improvement in cycle routes as well, in order to provide people with a choice in terms of the way they travel, and not feel that they have to travel by car.