This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/wales/wales_politics/8150424.stm
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Groups call for congestion charge | Groups call for congestion charge |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Congestion charging, paying for parking at work and a version of London's Oyster card are among measures being called for to improve Welsh transport. | Congestion charging, paying for parking at work and a version of London's Oyster card are among measures being called for to improve Welsh transport. |
| An alliance of 20 organisations is calling for the initiatives to be introduced by the assembly government instead of more road building. | An alliance of 20 organisations is calling for the initiatives to be introduced by the assembly government instead of more road building. |
| The Sustainable Transport Cymru coalition said politicians needed to commit more money to greener travel. | The Sustainable Transport Cymru coalition said politicians needed to commit more money to greener travel. |
| It comes as ministers prepare to unveil Wales' national transport plan. | It comes as ministers prepare to unveil Wales' national transport plan. |
| Details of the long-awaited plan will be given later when it is put out for consultation. | Details of the long-awaited plan will be given later when it is put out for consultation. |
| We're fed up of strategies promising greener transport when half the transport budget is tied up in road schemes Lee Waters, Sustainable Transport Cymru | We're fed up of strategies promising greener transport when half the transport budget is tied up in road schemes Lee Waters, Sustainable Transport Cymru |
| But the coalition is calling for a policy shift away from road building to fund a "bold package" of measures to help tackle climate change. | |
| Among initiatives they want ministers to consider are Smart Cards - "multimodal ticketing" for bus and rail travel, similar to London's Oyster cards - congestion charging in major towns and cities and parking controls, such as charging staff to park in workplaces. | Among initiatives they want ministers to consider are Smart Cards - "multimodal ticketing" for bus and rail travel, similar to London's Oyster cards - congestion charging in major towns and cities and parking controls, such as charging staff to park in workplaces. |
| They also say that better information about train and bus timetables, more road space given over to cycle and bus lanes, more secure bike parking and showers and lockers in workplaces would encourage more people to leave their cars at home. | They also say that better information about train and bus timetables, more road space given over to cycle and bus lanes, more secure bike parking and showers and lockers in workplaces would encourage more people to leave their cars at home. |
| Lee Waters, chair of Sustainable Transport Cymru, said they hoped ministers would "put their money where their mouth is" to improve sustainable transport. | Lee Waters, chair of Sustainable Transport Cymru, said they hoped ministers would "put their money where their mouth is" to improve sustainable transport. |
| GROUP'S TRANSPORT BLUEPRINT Smart cards to promote integrated rail and bus travelA range of 'smarter choices' measures - car clubs, car sharing, bus "real time information systems", park and ride schemesTraffic calming and speed restraint in residential areas to encourage walking and cyclingAn extensive network of shared paths for walking and cycling (segregated from traffic) Congestion charging allied with extra investment in public transport Parking control, such as use of workplace parking levies and re-developing parking space for "more productive uses"An extension of safe routes to schools, such as using traffic-calming measures near schools and creating walking and cycle routes to schoolsReallocation of road space towards sustainable modes of transportDemand responsive services, including community transport, to tackle social exclusion in rural areas and other areas of transport povertySource: Sustainable Transport Cymru coalition | GROUP'S TRANSPORT BLUEPRINT Smart cards to promote integrated rail and bus travelA range of 'smarter choices' measures - car clubs, car sharing, bus "real time information systems", park and ride schemesTraffic calming and speed restraint in residential areas to encourage walking and cyclingAn extensive network of shared paths for walking and cycling (segregated from traffic) Congestion charging allied with extra investment in public transport Parking control, such as use of workplace parking levies and re-developing parking space for "more productive uses"An extension of safe routes to schools, such as using traffic-calming measures near schools and creating walking and cycle routes to schoolsReallocation of road space towards sustainable modes of transportDemand responsive services, including community transport, to tackle social exclusion in rural areas and other areas of transport povertySource: Sustainable Transport Cymru coalition |
| "We're fed up of strategies promising greener transport when half the transport budget is tied up in road schemes," he said. | "We're fed up of strategies promising greener transport when half the transport budget is tied up in road schemes," he said. |
| "If we are serious about tackling climate change and creating a healthier Wales, we urgently need a bold shift in transport policy. Projects which cut car use should be given priority." | "If we are serious about tackling climate change and creating a healthier Wales, we urgently need a bold shift in transport policy. Projects which cut car use should be given priority." |
| He said false perceptions and a lack of information about sustainable travel were the main reasons he believed many people travelled by car. | He said false perceptions and a lack of information about sustainable travel were the main reasons he believed many people travelled by car. |
| "In a town or city centre it is often quicker to travel by bus or bike but because people think it's easier to jump in their car, they do. It's habit." | "In a town or city centre it is often quicker to travel by bus or bike but because people think it's easier to jump in their car, they do. It's habit." |
| He said the coalition was set up to ensure politicians and "decision makers" realised it was not just environmentalists who wanted to invest in greener transport. | He said the coalition was set up to ensure politicians and "decision makers" realised it was not just environmentalists who wanted to invest in greener transport. |
| It includes sustainable transport group Sustrans, Passenger Focus, the British Medical Association(BMA) and Bus Users UK Cymru. | |
| 'Local services eroded' | 'Local services eroded' |
| However, the RAC Foundation said in most cases "people drive not because they want to, but because they have to". | However, the RAC Foundation said in most cases "people drive not because they want to, but because they have to". |
| "Four out of five of us live in a household with a car, and over the past decade and a half car ownership amongst lower income families and the elderly has increased greatly," a spokesman said. | "Four out of five of us live in a household with a car, and over the past decade and a half car ownership amongst lower income families and the elderly has increased greatly," a spokesman said. |
| "It is the policies of governments which have eroded local services and meant people are forced to go further and further a field to reach the shops, schools and employment that used to be on their doorstep." | "It is the policies of governments which have eroded local services and meant people are forced to go further and further a field to reach the shops, schools and employment that used to be on their doorstep." |
| Meanwhile, campaigners are using the launch of the assembly government's transport plan to call for plans for an M4 motorway relief road to be scrapped. | Meanwhile, campaigners are using the launch of the assembly government's transport plan to call for plans for an M4 motorway relief road to be scrapped. |
| The six lane toll road, estimated to cost between £800m and £1bn, would be built through the "environmentally important" and "highly-protected" Gwent Levels, south of Newport. | The six lane toll road, estimated to cost between £800m and £1bn, would be built through the "environmentally important" and "highly-protected" Gwent Levels, south of Newport. |
| Neil Crumpton, of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said the "expensive, unnecessary and damaging road" would create more traffic. | Neil Crumpton, of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said the "expensive, unnecessary and damaging road" would create more traffic. |
| Sources told BBC Wales in April that soaring costs and a budget squeeze meant the M4 relief road plan was unlikely to go ahead. | Sources told BBC Wales in April that soaring costs and a budget squeeze meant the M4 relief road plan was unlikely to go ahead. |
| An assembly government spokesman said Deputy First Minister Ieuan Wyn Jones will make a statement on the national transport plan for Wales later. |