Leadership team for North Wales Metro

Six independent commissioners have been appointed to take forward the North Wales Metro scheme, which includes electrification of the ChesterBangor-Holyhead main line by 2029.

Transport for Wales, which secured £9 million of kick-start funding from the Welsh Government last September for the £50m integrated transport system, has chosen former Campaign for Better Transport Chief Executive Stephen Joseph to join the team.

Others on the panel are Sue Flack (former Nottingham City Council Director of Planning and Transport); Professor John Parkin (University of the West of England and the Centre for Transport and Society); Ashley Rogers (North Wales Mersey Dee Business Council); Dyfed Edwards (former Leader of Gwynedd Council); and Dr Georgina Santos (Cardiff University environmental and transport economist).

An additional rail scheme is to increase service frequencies between Liverpool and Wrexham via Shotton and also the direct route to Chester.

Money is already promised for an integrated station at Shotton (£1.5m), Deeside Parkway (£670,000), Wrexham’s stations (£2.7m), and a Snowdonia transport strategy to encourage park-and-ride (£1m).