6. Will the First Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government's plans to improve the strategic road network in mid Wales? OAQ53763

On 14 February, the Minister for Economy and Transport officially opened the £95 million Newtown bypass. We also plan further investments in the region that will improve connectivity and road safety.

Thank you, First Minister, for your answer. The Cefn bridge on the A458 near Trewern is one of the main routes from mid Wales into the midlands. There's growing frustration on the ongoing delays to repair works on this bridge following an accident that occurred last December. The delay has caused extensive queuing, especially during the holiday period, and there is currently no planned date for the works to begin. That's the latest information from the trunk road agency to my constituents. There doesn't appear to be any immediate date in sight for permanent repairs to take place due to agreements that have to take place with Network Rail, due to the safety concerns of operating on a live track. I hope you can give me a date, First Minister, but if you can't, can you also exert your influence on the trunk road agency and Network Rail to bring about a date for repair work to start on this important bridge?

Can I thank the Member for that question? He is absolutely right that two heavy goods vehicles collided on the Cefn bridge in December of last year and that caused major damage to the bridge. The bridge carries the trunk road over a railway and Russell George is quite right to point to the safety constraints that are inevitably in place where you have a live railway track and a bridge that needs repair. The bridge also has required a new steel parapet and that has had to be manufactured specifically, but that manufacture has now taken place. It's also been necessary to acquire the services of a specialist installer, but that installer is now ready to carry out the work. I'm pleased to be able to let the Member and his constituents know that Network Rail have now confirmed that track access has been granted for the weekend of Friday 7 June to Saturday 9 June, and that will allow that repair work to be carried out.