I'm not a member of the committee, but I'm very pleased to speak in this debate as I am a strong advocate for the active travel Act, and so are many of my constituents in Cardiff North, which is of course very famous for the Taff trail, one of the great cycling and walking routes in Wales. I know from my post box in Cardiff North how important cycling is, and also the cycling event that I organised recently was very well attended with lots of children and lots of residents of Cardiff North, and that was a great success. So, I welcome the report, which I think certainly highlights the issues that need to be addressed if we are going to be able to change people's travel habits. I particularly welcomed the film at the beginning. I thought that was very vivid and really illustrated the different modes of transport, so congratulations to the Members who took part in that film.

It's already been said that, of course, this is about health. I think Lee Waters said that in his contribution, and so I won't repeat that today. But I think that, when the active travel Act came into force in 2014, we all, rather naively, I suppose, expected to see walking and cycling become the norm for short, everyday journeys, and it is disappointing not to see the upward trends that we expected, and I know the issue about children has particularly been raised by a number of Members here today.

I think the committee's report has identified some of the issues behind why the progress to date has been slow, particularly the safety element, which has already been debated here, and the lack of appropriate infrastructure. But I do think it's really important that we link up all forms of transport so that active travel is an easy and accessible option. We have been talking about having an integrated transport system in Wales for many years, but we're still a long way from achieving it. Integrating active travel with public transport, I think, is an essential part of creating a step change when it comes to the way we travel.

I know that somebody said here today that the Wales and borders rail franchise was a lost opportunity, but to me it's a great opportunity, and I think that there will be a real opportunity with that franchise to ensure, along with the development of the south Wales metro, that we build cycling and walking as part of the whole system. I think it's a fantastic opportunity to better integrate walking and cycling with public transport. As I think the Chair had already said, as Sustrans says, rail stations must become active travel hubs, making it easier for commuters, locals and visitors to get active, and we need to ensure that all stations are accessible for pedestrians and cyclists, that there are safe and secure places to leave bikes and disabled access is improved so that we have equality for all.

I believe that, in Cardiff, there has been a big rise in cycling. Certainly, there are many more cycles on the road in Cardiff, and I think we've all seen how popular nextbike are becoming in Cardiff, with new locations being added on a regular basis. I've already got some of these docking stations in my constituency in Cardiff North, and I know more are coming soon to Rhiwbina, Whitchurch and Llandaff North. And this is going to provide an absolutely ideal opportunity to increase bike journeys in the city from train stations, university, workplaces and tourist destinations. 

Of course, we do have the development of the new Cardiff transport interchange in the city centre—the bus station, as we call it in Cardiff. I think that's another huge opportunity to build in cycling, walking and accessibility at that place. It's taken a long time to reach where we are now, but I'm very hopeful that that transport interchange will be a big encouragement for walkers and cyclists.

I think that if we can create a truly integrated public and active travel system, people will find the decision to leave their car at home a much easier one. So, I acknowledge that the report has said how difficult it is and how there's been a lack of progress, and I think it's also been said in this debate how we're very good in this body at making really good legislation—you know, world-breaking legislation—but how that is then applied and how you actually see the achievements is the great challenge. But I remain very optimistic because I think we've got the basis there. Certainly, in Cardiff, we've seen where the will is there—a big change that is really happening as we speak here. So, I feel optimistic for the future and thank the committee for this report.