‘We all need to change transport habits in Cardiff’

GETTING around Cardiff, whether on bike, bus or by car isn’t always easy. Many cyclists believe that there isn’t the right infrastructure, many drivers think roads should be brought up to scratch for everyone, not just cyclists. And trains and buses are far from perfect.

The council’s new cabinet member for transport Caro Wild knows he will never please everyone – but believes people can work together to ensure the city moves better, especially as it grows.

Cardiff council’s new cabinet published its list of priorities last month. Plans include cycle super highways, upgrading the Taff Trail, the Bay Loop plus Castle Street, and cleaning up the city’s air.

Included in Councillor Wild’s portfolio is the Metro and he has a role in ensuring traffic infrastructure for the city’s 40,000 new homes as part of the Local Development Plan is right.

He became Labour councillor for Riverside in October 2015 and this is his first taste of cabinet.

“I want to make the centre of Cardiff somewhere that’s really good for public transport,” he says.

On his plan to introduce cycle super highways, which come with a price tag of £10m, he adds: “I think this shows we’re ambitious. This won’t be easy to deliver and it would have been easy for us not to put it in. But we’re doing what we can to bring them in. It a thing that would make a huge difference.”

The highways are segregated cycle routes in the city, no sharing with buses or pedestrians.

One of the problems is the existing streets are relatively narrow, and adding a segregated lane would eat into existing space.

The lanes could be introduced in the road, or on to the pavement, he says – all options will be considered.

“Queen Street could be transformed if the Metro goes ahead and makes the railway station there a key part of commuting into the city. One of the early stages of the Metro, when it comes, will be the electrification of the Valleys lines and increasing rolling stock. The majority of that is going to come to Queen Street,” he said.

“We are hopeful light rail will be coming to Cardiff and tram links, but that’s going to take a while if it gets approved. In the meantime, buses are going to be really important to us.”

Cardiff is growing, and as the 40,000 homes in the Local Development Plan are created, so will more traffic.

He says he can understand why people are worried about traffic and how roads which are already congested will get busier.

“I am concerned as well. I’m not going to say that everything is going to be absolutely fine. There is going to be a huge growth in Cardiff and people are right to be concerned.

“One of the first things I did was to ask for a meticulous briefing about the LDP and infrastructure plans.

“This LDP is one of the best in the UK,” said Coun Wild.

He said that as part of the agreements being signed, triggers are included so that if roads get too congested over a certain period, the developer is bound to put forward funding or measures to ease that congestion.

At schemes like Plasdwr, 21 buses every hour are planned – if that isn’t enough, more will be introduced.

New park-and-ride schemes will also be key.

“There’s not room for all of us to have exactly what we want. We need to plan as a city to change our habits around transport.

“We can’t just say we’re going to give everything to cyclists or commuters or drivers. We have got to plan.”