Plans to devolve highway funding to local authorities welcomed by North Wales MS

A commitment from the Welsh Government to further devolve highway funding to local authorities in Wales has been welcomed by a Member of the Senedd (MS) for North Wales.

Carolyn Thomas, Welsh Labour MS for North Wales, said that giving local councils more control over transport funding will enable them to address the areas of most need effectively.

Currently, grants from the Welsh Government to local authorities are often designated for specific transport projects, such as Active Travel schemes or Safe Routes to School.

However, Ms Thomas, a former deputy leader of Flintshire County Council, advocates for allowing councils to allocate the funds as they see fit, whether it be for highway upgrades, pothole repairs, new cycle routes, or Safe Routes to School.

[Carolyn Thomas MS]

During a session in the Senedd last week, the North Wales MS queried the Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Transport, and North Wales, Ken Skates MS, about the potential for realigning local transport grant funding based on local needs.

In response, Cabinet Secretary Ken Skates acknowledged the issue, saying, “Carolyn Thomas has regularly identified road maintenance as a major issue for local authorities, and I’m pleased to be able to tell Members that I’m looking at future budgets for local authorities – active travel, road maintenance, the entire package – and how we can devolve the decision-making process and the money, so that local authorities can decide how best to spend the money in their local areas, because they know best.”

Ms Thomas expressed her support for this approach, stating, “As a former Councillor myself, I know that local authorities have the local knowledge and expertise to best determine where the money needs to be spent. In many cases, that will be on maintaining existing highways and repairing potholes. Whilst new projects are of course welcome, they shouldn’t be at the expense of maintaining our existing infrastructure.”

She continued, “Whether we are using a bus, a bicycle, a car, or walking, we all benefit from well-maintained highways and pavements. But maintaining them has become an increasingly difficult job for local authorities faced with reduced funding. We need to ensure that our highways are both safe and free from potholes, helping local authorities tackle a growing problem, whilst boosting connectivity across Wales.”