DEPUTY Minister for Climate Change Lee Waters was in Wrexham today to see work taking place as part of the North Wales Metro scheme.
Mr Waters, who also has responsibility for transport, was at Wrexham General Station to see what is being done there as part of a raft of measures to encourage greater use of public transport in Wales.
The Government has given £9m to Transport for Wales for public transport improvements, which is part of a £50m overall investment since 2020.
Plans include the creation of new railway stations in Deeside, Broughton and Greenfield, as well as developments to existing stations, including Wrexham General.
WATCH - Our interview with deputy minister Lee Waters is below. Watch until the very end for his thoughts on the Wrexham AFC takeover!
New images have been released by the Government today, showing the scale of the work being carried out over the course of the project.
The project, which will run until 2029, will also include greater frequency of services from Bangor to Wrexham and the longer term plan of electrification of the line from Holyhead through to Chester, with extensions to west Wales and to the north of Anglesey.
Mr Waters was met by Wrexham MS and minister for North Wales Lesley Griffiths along with staff from Transport for Wales, including North Wales Metro programme manager Ruth Wojtan.
Further improvements taking place this year, which Mr Waters was briefed on during the visit, included:
• £4.8m for bus enhancements including information screens across the Traws Cymru network, refurbishment of Bangor bus station, and new fflecsi schemes
• £2.7m for improvements at train stations including Wrexham, and accessibility improvements
• more than £1m to look at ways of improving connectivity between Wrexham and Liverpool
• more than £1m for the Snowdonia Transport Strategy which aims to encourage park and ride, bus and active travel in the National Park
• £1.5m to develop an integrated station at Shotton
• £670,000 towards the development of Deeside Parkway
• £900,000 towards a study of the north Wales coast mainline, with a view to improve journey times
• £250,000 to support the roll-out of integrated ticketing on buses
Mr Waters said that, in essence, the Welsh Government was investing in public transport to help tackle climate change by reducing the amount of car journeys made and to make it the easier option by making it as comfortable and accessible as possible. He also talked about the benefit that such infrastructure developments would bring to North Wales, opening up job, business and leisure opportunities across the region.
He said: “In north Wales, we have put in place the foundations for transformative rail and bus services and active travel.
“Alongside reducing rural isolation and opening-up job, business and leisure opportunities across north Wales, these plans will also play a vital part in developing the region’s wider economy.
“Our transport network will change the way we travel by creating modern, sustainable bus, rail and cycling and walking networks, creating a range of work and leisure opportunities while reducing the environmental impact.
“They also will play a critical role in delivering the priorities and objectives of our ambitious new transport strategy, Y Llwybr Newydd and helping us meet our target of 45% of journeys being made by public transport or active travel by 2040, helping to reduce road congestion, carbon emissions and air pollution.
“People right across Wales can soon expect a network of routes and interchanges that offer faster, more frequent and reliable services on more comfortable, accessible, and greener vehicles.
“However, we cannot achieve our shared ambitions to address climate change without the UK Government’s support to deliver these programmes where passengers are heavily dependent on enhancements on Network Rail’s infrastructure.”
The Deputy Minister was also able to see early progress made on the multi-million pound Wrexham Gateway project.
Tackling climate change
The project, made possible thanks to £25m from the Welsh Government in March this year, will transform one of the principle routes into Wrexham town centre and is being delivered through a partnership between Welsh Government, Wrexham Council and Wrexham Glyndŵr University in collaboration with Transport for Wales and Wrexham AFC.
Mr Waters added: "We need to really lift public transport and get people using their cars less and we're only going to do that if we can make it easier to use public transport than it currently is. And this project - we're calling it the Metro - essentially, it's about buses, it's about trains, it's about cycling and walking for local journeys.
"And we need to bring those things together to create a system that is easier to use locally than the car is, because if we're going to tackle climate change, and it really is the challenge of our generation, we've got to get this right and this project, which we've put £50m into the North Wales Metro in the last year or so, is a big part of our plans."
Commenting on the impact that the plans would have on people living in Flintshire and Wrexham, Mr Waters said: "So what we want to do is to do the right thing on transport to make it easier to use alternatives to the car and as we do it, to use that to regenerate the area. So we'll have new stations, we'll have new trains which are currently being tested in North Wales. They'll be rolled out in North Wales at the end of this year - new services - lots of investment and improving communities as we go using transport as a catalyst for improving the Wrexham area."
When the Leader asked Mr Waters for his thoughts on the big boost to Wrexham brought about by the takeover of Wrexham AFC by Hollywood stars Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds, he responded with an impression of Ryan Reynolds in a recent Wrexham AFC promotional video. To get the full effect of this, watch our video, where Mr Waters talks about the benefits being brought to North Wales by both the Government's investment and a taste of Hollywood coming to town.
He said: "All I can say is 'Ifor Williams Trailers', which I think is brilliant. I think they're really positive, because what it's done is make people think again, of what's in Wrexham. It's a shame that it's taken two Hollywood stars to get us to do that but hey let's ride the wave because it can have ripples far beyond football and far beyond Wrexham."
Ruth Wojtan from Transport for Wales said: "We are really excited to be working in partnership with Wrexham Council, Wrexham Glyndwr University and the Welsh Government. The more we can get people using public transport the better that will be. This is a really exciting scheme. It's a long term project but we are trying to go as fast as we possibly can. There have been improvements here at Wrexham General Station already, for example, including new canopies and seating."
Further improvements taking place at Wrexham General also include a new bike rack, recycling facilities and a new accessible toilet.
For more information on the North Wales Metro scheme, visit https://tfw.wales/projects/metro/north-wales-metro.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here