During a Senedd plenary session on Wednesday 10th January, Vale of Clwyd MS Gareth Davies lamented the loss of the X51 bus route between Rhyl and Denbigh in the wake of the rollout of the 20mph speed restriction. Mr Davies called for a response to this news from the Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters MS, asking Mr Waters whether he still believes the policy to be a success.
Mr Davies addressed the chamber, highlighting the essential nature of local bus routes in the Vale of Clwyd, with little access to rail infrastructure in North Wales, generally. Mr Davies challenged the mandate for the 20mph policy in his constituency, with 13,584 constituents signing a petition against the 20mph rollout which Mr Davies said is causing damage to essential services and the local economy.
Mr Davies added:
“The Welsh Government is showing a refusal to admit that they got this policy wrong, even in the face of public backlash and mounting pressure from people all over Wales. We are seeing increasing knock-on effects such as the latest news of the scrapping of the X51 bus route which is an essential service for many elderly people in the Vale who use this route. The bus route is a vital transport link, connecting people to local businesses such as the popular Tweedmill shopping outlet. The withdrawal of this service will have a significant impact on the local economy.”
“Lee Waters refers to local authority discretion, but this is only within tight guidelines, with some local authorities being very slow to consider any exemptions to the 20mph restriction. I submitted a list of roads to Denbighshire County Council in December of last year with a list of roads that residents want exempt. The council is now reviewing these roads which offers a glimmer of hope, but still, the cavalcade of damage from the 20mph rollout is still accelerating. The Welsh Government needs to accept that they got this policy wrong.”