It costs too much money, South Wales always gets the money and people in South Wales are the richest.
Over the past two editions of GitN we have been looking at infrastructure spending in Wales and at the main schemes since 2010 and those planned for the future.
These are the tables from the last edition showing how spending is actually much lower in total and then per person for South Wales Central and South Wales East.
Infrastructure spending/per person by region with M4 Relief Road |
Total Population |
Spending per Person |
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£ billion |
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North Wales |
20.341 |
571,500 |
£35,592 |
Mid & West Wales |
5.548 |
321,000 |
£17,283 |
South Wales East |
1.758 |
641,000 |
£2,742 |
South Wales Central |
1.853 |
722,200 |
£2,565 |
South Wales West |
2.918 |
666,500 |
£4,378 |
Infrastructure spending/per person by region without M4 Relief Road |
Total Population |
Spending per Person |
|
|
£ billion |
||
North Wales |
20.341 |
571,500 |
£35,592 |
Mid & West Wales |
5.548 |
321,000 |
£17,283 |
South Wales East |
1.758 |
641,000 |
£2,742 |
South Wales Central |
1.853 |
722,200 |
£2,565 |
South Wales West |
2.918 |
666,500 |
£4,378 |
When we look at how well off an area is in Wales we use the W.I.M.D. (Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation).
W.I.M.D. measures of deprivation in Wales.
Deprivation is the lack of access to opportunities and resources which we might expect.
This could be material things or being able to do normal things that most other people can do.
W.I.M.D. combines the following information into a single measurement (index) so that they are easier to compare.
It will cause damage to important environments.
It is true that the proposed route will cut through 2% of the SSSI’s (Sites of Special Scientific Interest) of the Gwent Levels.
It will stop Newport Docks from operating.
The bridge over the river Usk and Newport Docks will stop the tallest ships from using part of the docks.
Check out the fly through video again or this screen grab to see how much of the docks area would be affected.
Most of the docks will be unaffected.
There is a better route.
Some people agree that something needs to be done but that there is a better choice called the ‘Blue Route’.
The blue route would be cheaper costing an estimated £350 million.
It would follow the route of the current 4 lane dual carriageway which currently joins Junction 23 at Magor with Junction 28 at Tredegar Park.
The blue route would replace the current 4 lane dual carriageway road with a new 4 lane dual carriageway road creating no extra capacity.
However the existing junctions with local roads would be removed so instead of linking communities the road would divide them.
This route would also put the extra traffic through existing residential areas bringing extra noise and pollution to many thousands of people.
By losing the current road Newport Town Centre roads would return to the bad traffic jams before the city council built the existing road.
Read what Newport MP Paul Flynn has to say about it.
“The Blue route ‘solution’ would be worse for Newport than no change. The Blue route scheme would bring back the pre-2004 congestion, which, with additional new problems, would make Newport a traffic hell of gridlock and pollution.”
Some people believe that it is best to do nothing.
Some believe that as fast as we build roads cars will fill them. That it is better to improve public transport and that the new South Wales Metro (see the past two editions of GitN) will solve the problems.
The South Wales Metro will in the future hopefully mean that people living in the South Wales Valleys and the other towns of South Wales will have an alternative to using the car to get to city and town centres for work, shopping and pleasure.
However its impacts will be very small over the next ten years.
It will not help business transport or those needing to go elsewhere to work such as the industrial areas and out of town work sites.
Do nothing is what has happened since 1993 when the need for this road first started planning.
Since 1993 the Economy of Wales has lost more money than it would have cost. Over the next few decades Wales will lose at least double the cost of building it again.
Not least try talking to the residents of the Gwent Valleys and Cwmbran who need to go to work two hours early in the morning to avoid the traffic jams and get to work on time and then sit in a traffic jam for an hour every evening.
Think about how much pollution is created from the many cars stuck in the traffic jams every morning and every evening.
Think about the businesses losing tens of millions every year or the tens of thousands of people unemployed as a result of doing nothing for the past 24 years.
The last UK Prime Minister described the M4 around Newport as a “foot on the windpipe of the Welsh economy”.
This why the Welsh Government believes that it is best to do both:
Read article 1 and 2 carefully. If you have not done so scan the information on infrastructure in Wales in the past two editions of GitN.
Be aware of bias; maybe try to research some other sources.
For each of the options:
Draw up a simple table to help you think about good things and bad things about each option.
Option |
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Good |
Bad |
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