Siân Gwenllian MS Working for the people of Arfon

Sian Gwenllian, Member of the Senedd for Arfon has said the Welsh Government must improve bus services in Arfon as part of important bus reforms due to be discussed in the Senedd next year.

The new legislation, if passed, will require Welsh Ministers to secure and ensure the delivery of local bus services, through a franchise model.

This will mean decisions about bus services in Wales, including routes, timetables and fares, will be made by Welsh Government, Transport for Wales and local authorities working on regional footprints.

The Welsh Government hope that franchising will create a network that better serves the public; connecting with the rail network and allowing more integrated ticketing.

Sian Gwenllian MS said :

“Research has been carried out amongst young people in Bethesda in my constituency under the banner of the Imagining the Future project. One desire that has emerged from that work, which was expressed very clearly, was the desire for a regular bus service connecting parts of the Ogwen valley to each other, and with the rest of Arfon and beyond.

“It’s vital that the needs of young people in post-industrial valleys such as Dyffryn Ogwen are given proper consideration when re-imagining bus services.

“The North Wales Corporate Joint Committee will be driving the change from 2028 in north Wales, and there will be cooperation with the Liverpool and Manchester city regions to devise the network in the North.

"So my question is how will the Government ensure fairness to the areas of the north west - which are far from the populated area of ​​Merseyside/Deeside?

"Research by the Bevan Foundation in Arfon indicates that the lack of public transport has a direct impact on poverty in all sorts of different ways - from reducing people's ability to work to problems going shopping, medical appointments or social activities.

"In the last census, only 853 people commuted to work by bus in Arfon while over 15,000 people drove to work.

"When creating the new model - and I support it in principle - the needs of some of the poorest communities in the North West must be central to the criteria. This includes post-industrial and rural communities and communities far from the population hubs.”