A SMART CARD FOR WALES

Plaid Cymru will establish a Smart Card system in order to give people who live in Wales access to their universal entitlements. Through the smart card, people will be able people to access entitlements including free prescriptions, free bus travel for the over 60s, and free access to museums. The Party of Wales will seek to expand this list of entitlements when Wales has the power to do so, including offering citizens zero toll charges on the Severn Bridge, and unlimited rail and bus travel, for an annual fee.

Launching the policy, Simon Thomas said that the cards would symbolise a new relationship between Welsh Government and the citizens it serves.

Plaid Cymru Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire candidate Simon Thomas said:

“Plaid Cymru will establish a new way of working across government, and between government and citizen, delivering effectively for the people of Wales.

“If elected in May, Plaid Cymru will create a Smart Card for everyone who lives in Wales, which will become the main system of delivering universal entitlements.

“Plaid Cymru’s Smart Card will entitle users to free prescriptions, free bus travel for the over 60s, free access to museums and many other entitlements.

“And as the Assembly gains powers over other aspects such as the Severn Bridge tolls, we will scrap charges for card carriers.

“Plaid Cymru will establish a new relationship between Welsh Government and the people of Wales, and our Smart Card is a symbol of that.”

Plaid Cymru Aberafan candidate Bethan Jenkins said:

“Plaid Cymru’s Smart Card will deliver free universal entitlements for the people of Wales. Under a Plaid Cymru government your Smart Card will give you access to free bus travel and free entry to museums and a series of other entitlements, and we look forward to extending this of entitlements list in future.

“It’s time for a government with a focus on what it can deliver for the people of Wales and Plaid Cymru is the change Wales needs.”

BETTER BUT NOT GOOD ENOUGH

I welcome the planned reductions in the Severn bridge tolls announced in the budget. The Severn bridge tolls are a current significant financial burden for many businesses, commuters and motorists and will remain so after 2018. The tolls can impact on where people choose to locate and do business, Plaid Cymru has repeatedly said that the ultimate goal should be to scrap the Severn bridge tolls altogether.

In government, Plaid would work to achieve this aim, beginning with a reduction to a fee that would cover maintenance costs only. The Party of Wales is committed to removing all obstacles, which are holding back the Welsh economy. The Severn bridges are of strategic importance and it is vital that they operate in a manner, which helps rather than hinders Wales's economic development.

Westminster still needs not just to come clean on the future of the Severn Bridge tolls, which are a tax on commuters, business and jobs. I have long stated that the National Assembly should have control of the Severn Bridges, it should also be directly involved in any discussions about the future of the Severn Bridge tolls as well, as the record continues to shows that successive Westminster governments remain largely indifferent to Welsh interests.

I remain seriously concerned that the Department for Transport may find even the reduced tolls far too useful as a source of income to simply to either eliminate or to hand over to the control of the National Assembly in Cardiff. Based of the fact that relatively recent Labour Governments in Westminster with significant majorities and various shades of Conservative `(and Liberal Democrat) Governments between 1997 and 2015 did practically nothing to relieve the burden of the bridge tolls.

One thing remains clear, the fact that successive Westminster governments have failed to act in a timely manner when Wales or Welsh interests have been raised in the past. The future reduction in tolls is nice but it is frankly not good enough. At present the long-term future of the tolls still remains unclear – save for the fact that as far as we know Westminster has no plan to remove them. 

A WAKE UP CALL?

The announcement that there will be lane closures on the old Severn Bridge until the autumn should be a wake up call to the bridges long-term future. The old Severn Bridge opened in 1966 and is nearly 50 years old - it won't be around forever. At this moment in time I cannot envisage any Westminster government or even a government in Cardiff Bay agreeing or funding a replacement bridge. The closure of the old Severn Bridge will directly impact on commuters and businesses in south east Monmouthshire, the Wye Valley, the Forest of Dean and south west Gloucestershire who use the old bridge to travel to and from work and to trade. 

If there is not be another Severn Crossing to replace the original Severn Crossing then we will be back to having only one Severn crossing. Changes will then need to made to the existing M48 / M4 including an M48 junction for Caldicot and a direct feed into the eastbound M4 this side of the current Second Severn crossing. This would replace the current arrangement whereby current users of the M48 have to use the existing Magor M4 junction to join the M4 eastbound to cross the second Severn Bridge and the same junction to gain return access to the M48. 

A possible solution to this potential transport bottleneck may be the construction of a joint road and rail bridge across the Severn, near Lydney. This bridge could provide a partial solution to the chronic traffic congestion in Chepstow and also provide a much-needed shorter more direct rail route to the east as well as dealing with as yet unaddressed problem of the ageing Severn Tunnel.  This solution is wholly in England it would provide a more accessible route to Bristol and the M5/M4 to commuters and businesses based in south east Wales - it would also in my opinion stand a much better chance of being funded by an increasing Anglo-centric Westminster parliament.

Westminster needs not just to come clean on both the future of the Severn Bridge tolls, which are a tax on commuters, business and jobs. Plaid Cymru is committed to cutting the bridge tolls initially to £2 pounds. Westminster also needs to entirely open up about the medium to long-term future of the old Severn Bridge and any replacement bridge. I have long stated that the National Assembly should have control of the Severn Bridges, it should also be directly involved in any discussions about the future of the old Severn Bridge as well, as the record shows that successive Westminster governments have consistently failed to protect our interests.

FLEECED FOR CHRISTMAS!

The January 2016 increase makes the Severn Bridge toll one of the most expensive per kilometre; this hinders economic growth and punishes commuters, businesses and visitors. The tolls are quite simply a tax on jobs, a tax on businesses and a tax on commuters. 

In 1966, it cost 12p per car to cross the bridge (around £2 pound in today’s money) it now costs £6.60 per car. The concession holders have been fleecing us for as much as they can get for as long as they can with little but warm words from Westminster to restrain or regulate them. On the matter of the Severn Bridge tolls over the years Westminster has simply failed.

We used to hope that the tolls would eventually be removed, possibly when the concession came to an end  - currently the franchise should end in 2018. However, in December 2014, the UK Government admitted that the tolls could be maintained for potentially for another NINE years (potentially until 2027) to recoup its costs on the Severn Bridge crossings after they return to public ownership, according to information obtained by Plaid Cymru.

In a response to a Freedom of Information Act by Plaid, the UK Highways Agency, said:

“Severn River Crossing (SRC) is entitled to collect a defined sum from the tolls (£1,028.9m  in July 1989 prices) and the current forecasts indicate that this sum will be recouped in 2018. 

“After this time, the crossings will be handed back to the Government. No decisions have been made regarding the future of the Severn bridges.  From this point onwards, government has the right to recoup its own costs from the construction, maintenance and management of the bridge until 2027.  This would be for costs that fall outside of the scope of the current concession for example costs incurred for cable corrosion work. 

“Based on a continuation of current arrangements it is expected to take 1-2 years to recover this money, however, the exact nature of that regime has yet to be determined.”

The Highways Agency has listed spending on work on main cable corrosion on the first Severn crossing as  £5,272,000 between 2010-11 and 2014-15. Then in the following three financial years the project spending costs will be another £4,767,000 from next April through to 2017-18.

Back in 2012, Plaid Cymru submitted a Freedom of Information request to the Department of Transport seeking details of any correspondence between it and the Welsh Government on the level of tolls since May 2011, the last Assembly elections. In its response the Department of Transport merely listed emails between the Highways Agency and the Welsh Government advising of planned increases in tolls for 2012 and 2013. An FOI request revealed that there was no other correspondence between the Welsh Government and the Westminster Government. 

In 2012 a report for the Welsh government suggested that abolishing the tolls would increase traffic by an estimated 12% - equivalent to about 11,000 vehicles a day – and that businesses and commuters forked out around £ 80 million pounds a year crossing the Severn bridges.

http://wales.gov.uk/about/aboutresearch/econoresearch/completed/severntolls/?lang=en

In October 2010, Professor Peter Midmore's independent economic study of the Severn Bridge tolls which has recommended that the revenues should stay in Wales, once the crossings revert to public hands. This study of 122 businesses was commissioned by the Federation of Small Businesses revealed that the tolls had a negative impact on 30% of firms in South Wales, this compared with 18% in the Greater Bristol area.

Severn Bridge Tolls since 1976

While noting that the economic impact was not substantial for most, the 2010 study found that transport; construction and tourism-related companies reliant on regular crossings suffered increased costs and reduced competitiveness. The 2010 study found that Welsh businesses were unfairly penalised by the tolls and concluded that the money should be shared with the Assembly Government and used to improve Wales’ roads and public transport.

The general political consensus to do something about the tolls is nice but somewhat vague on the details. Based on their record in at Westminster I would not hold my breath in anticipation of any action on the Severn Bridge tolls. Labour (New and not so New) in power at Westminster from 1997 to 2010 did nothing. The Conservative and Liberal Democratic Coalition when in power at Westminster from 2010 to 2015 did nothing. Likewise the now unrestrained Conservative Party currently in power at Westminster will also probably do nothing

In 2018 the franchise will revert back to Westminster and the Department for Transport - what concerns me is that this income may prove too useful to let go. The ominous silence from the Westminster on the fate of the tolls should concern to us all of us. I think that it is perfectly reasonable for the Department For Transport (and the Westminster Government) to clearly state what it intentions in relation to the Severn Bridge tolls.

Plaid Cymru wants the transfer of powers (to Wales) and the tolls initially reduced to £2, something that could have a considerable impact on businesses and the economy. For simple clarity the ownership of the Severn bridges should be transferred to the National Assembly in 2018, and that decision needs to be made sooner rather than later and preparations for the transfer need to begin as soon as possible.

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

The tolls to cross the Severn Bridge and Second Severn Crossing into Wales will increase once again from the 1st January 2016, with cars paying £6.60 - up from the current £6.50 - while small goods vehicles and small buses facing a 10p rise to £13.20, and heavy goods vehicles and buses having to pay £19.80, up from £19.60. 

The January 2016 increase makes the toll one of the most expensive per kilometre and hinders economic growth.  In 1966, it cost 12p to cross the bridge, which would be around £2 pound in today’s money – something that clearly suggests that the toll concession holders are fleecing us for as much as they can get before the franchise expires.

One often-ignored fact in relation to the Severn Bridge tolls is that the tolls on the Humber Bridge are subsidized by Westminster. When last in office at Westminster, the party formerly known as New Labour chose to quietly (and regularly) subsidise the Humber Bridge tolls, yet made no move what so ever towards doing anything about dealing with the tax on jobs, businesses and commuters which are passed off as the Severn bridge tolls – and our local Labour elected representatives pretty much maintained their silence.  

Interestingly enough the Humber Bridge subsidy has been continued by the Conservative Government who have continued to drive the post Thatcherite ‘free market’ ideology into wholly new areas of government. Yet oddly enough they show little inclination to help Welsh commuters and businesses out with a simular subsidy.

Allegedly in 2018 ownership of the two Severn Bridges will revert back to the Westminster Government ‘s Department for Transport, once the take from the tolls reach passes the magic figure of £996 million pounds (that is at 1989 prices). The Labour in Wales Welsh government (who tend to ask for things they know they won’t get) has called for control of the tolls when the Severn Crossings return to public ownership.

There does appears to be a general political consensus that something must be done about reducing the Severn bridge tolls – which is nice – but not particularly helpful to motorists. Plaid wants the transfer of powers (to Wales) so that tolls on the bridges can be reduced, something that could have a considerable impact on businesses and the economy.

What worries me is that the Department of Transport may find the income from the Severn bridge tolls too useful to let go. The ominous silence from the Westminster on the eventual ownership of the bridge and the potential fate of the tolls should be a real cause for concern to us all. 

The ownership of the Severn bridges should be transferred to the National Assembly in 2018, which means that a decision needs to be made now and preparations for the transfer begun ASAP.

THE SEVERN BRIDGE TOLLS

It would be nice if the Severn Bridge tolls could scraped, as have all the bridge tolls in Scotland. The problem is not that the bridges span (mostly)  a border that lies between two administrative areas - handing control of both bridges to the National Assembly in 2018 could easily solve that problem. 

The real problem that hard pressed commuters face is that the Department for Transport is already (no doubt) looking at any toll revenues and thinking of milking the bridge tolls for all that it can squeeze out of them (less maintenance costs). The lack of a direct rail connection between the Ebbw valley and Newport also means that most (potential commuters to Bristol and beyond) have little choice but to drive to work. 

This oversight (if it can be called that) may reflect successive Welsh Governments ignoring the economic realities that drive a significant number of Welsh residents to make the long daily commute across the Severn Bridges. The day the tolls are significantly reduced or removed cannot come soon enough.

THE TAX ON GOING TO WORK

Cross the Bridge(s) and pay the tax on jobs! 

The Severn bridge tolls are a tax on going to work and are a tax on doing business and its time to bring an end to the tax on going to work. Even though the private toll franchise may come to an end in 2018 the tolls may yet continue to be collected until 2027 by the Westminster Government and the Department for Transport.

A Plaid Cymru freedom of information request revealed that while the Severn crossings are likely to finally return to public ownership by 2018, the Westminster Government will still have the right to recover its costs. This right lasts until 2027. With the present toll rates it would take one to two years for the Westminster Government to recoup its costs but at the moment it is deliberately keeping its intentions hidden.

The Westminster Government needs to come clean on its plans after 2018 and whether it intends to keep charging up to 2027 and beyond. With control of the tolls devolve a Plaid Cymru Government would reduce the tolls to around £2 (under today’s prices) to cover maintenance, staff costs and contingencies. Eliminating the tolls altogether would be kept under review and would depend on costs.

The tolls could form a useful revenue stream for Welsh Governments, but the priority of Plaid Cymru is to cut the tolls. By the time the two Severn Bridges come back into public ownership in 2018, Severn River Crossings plc will have milked its cash cow to the tune of about £ 1.029 billion pounds. The scale of the profits has been helped by the fact that routine maintenance of the old (M48) Severn Bridge (which is periodically closed at weekends) has continued to be funded by the Department for Transport, from the public coffers.

We simply cannot rely on the Department for Transport to act to further our interests at all. It is important that preparations for the end of the privately administered toll franchise begin as soon as possible. The Severn Bridges (and tolls) might well be out or sight and out of mind to most Westminster based ministers but they loom very large in the imagination (and the wallets) of long suffering commuters, businesses and visitors here in the south as they are literally a tax on going to work and on doing business.

The tolls to cross the Severn Bridge and Second Severn Crossing into Wales have risen yet again. From 1 January (2015), cars have to pay £6.50 - up from the current £6.40 - small goods vehicles and small buses received a 30p rise to £13.10, and heavy goods vehicles and buses faced a rise up to £19.60, from £19.20. The current owners of the Severn Toll bridges are Severn River Crossing PLC who are able to increase the cost every January in line with the Retail Price Index.

In a response to a Freedom of Information Act by Plaid, the UK Highways Agency, said:

“Severn River Crossing (SRC) is entitled to collect a defined sum from the tolls (£1,028.9m in July 1989 prices) and the current forecasts indicate that this sum will be recouped in 2018. 

“After this time, the crossings will be handed back to the Government. No decisions have been made regarding the future of the Severn bridges.  From this point onwards, government has the right to recoup its own costs from the construction, maintenance and management of the bridge until 2027.  This would be for costs that fall outside of the scope of the current concession for example costs incurred for cable corrosion work. 

“Based on a continuation of current arrangements it is expected to take 1-2 years to recover this money, however, the exact nature of that regime has yet to be determined.”

The Highways Agency listed spending on work on main cable corrosion on the first Severn crossing as  £5,272,000 between 2010-11 and 2014-15. Then in the following three financial years the project spending costs will be another £4,767,000 from next April through to 2017-18.

Back in 2012, Plaid Cymru submitted a Freedom of Information request to the Department of Transport seeking details of any correspondence between it and the Welsh Government on the level of tolls since May 2011, the last Assembly elections. In its response the Department of Transport merely listed emails between the Highways Agency and the Welsh Government advising of planned increases in tolls for 2012 and 2013. An FOI request revealed that there was no other correspondence between the Welsh Government and the Westminster Government. 

In 2012 a report for the Welsh government suggested that abolishing the tolls would increase traffic by an estimated 12% - equivalent to about 11,000 vehicles a day – and that businesses and commuters forked out around £ 80 million pounds a year crossing the Severn bridges.

Back in October 2010, Professor Peter Midmore produced an independent economic study of the Severn Bridge tolls, which recommended that the revenues should stay in Wales, once the crossings revert to public hands. This study of 122 businesses was commissioned by the Federation of Small Businesses revealed that the tolls had a negative impact on 30% of firms in South Wales, this compared with 18% in the Greater Bristol area.

While noting that the economic impact was not substantial for most, the 2010 study found that transport; construction and tourism-related companies reliant on regular crossings suffered increased costs and reduced competitiveness. The 2010 study found that Welsh businesses were unfairly penalised by the tolls and concluded that the money should be shared with the Assembly Government and used to improve Wales’ roads and public transport.

Studies and reports aside we continue to have little choice but to pay what is effectively for many people simply a tax on going to work, doing business or simply visiting Wales.

STILL GETTING FLEECED!

The toll to cross the Severn Bridge and Second Severn Crossing into Wales will increase once again from the 1st January, with cars paying £6.50 - up from the current £6.40 - while small goods vehicles and small buses facing a 30p rise to £13.10, and heavy goods vehicles and buses having to pay £19.60, up from £19.20. 

Severn Bridge tolls since 1976

 This new increase makes the toll one of the most expensive per kilometre and hinders economic growth. Back in 1966, it cost you 12p to cross the bridge, which would be around £2 pound in today’s money – something that clearly suggests that the toll concession holders are fleecing us for as much as they can get before the franchise expires.

Back on January 1^st 2014, the cost of crossing into Wales by car increased to £6.40 - a rise of 20p - small goods vehicles pay £12.80 (a 40p increase) and HGVs £19.20 (a 60p increase). The Severn Bridge operators rolled out the same old tired excuses for their greed saying that the tolls were agreed by a parliamentary order and in line with the Retail Price Index (RPI), etc, etc.

When it comes to the Severn Bridge tolls, one often-ignored fact is that the tolls on the Humber Bridge are subsidized by Westminster. When last in office at Westminster, the party formerly known as New Labour chose to quietly (and regularly) subsidise the Humber Bridge tolls, yet made no move what so ever towards doing anything about dealing with the tax on jobs, businesses and commuters which are passed off as the Severn bridge tolls – and our local Labour elected representatives pretty much maintained their silence.  

This may explain why our local Labour MP’s do little save trotting out the same old news releases bemoaning the failure of the Government (when in opposition) to do anything about the tolls. The Humber Bridge subsidy has been continued by the Con Dem Coalition Government, who have driven the post Thatcherite ‘free market’ ideology into wholly new areas, yet show no inclination to curb the Humber Bridge state subsidy or offer to help Welsh commuters and businesses out with a simular subsidy.

At some point in 2018 ownership of the two Severn Bridges will revert back to the Westminster Government ‘s Department for Transport, once the take from the tolls reach passes the magic figure of £996 million pounds (that is at 1989 prices). The Labour in Wales Welsh government wants to take control of the tolls when the Severn Crossings return to public ownership and would look to reduce them although it believes abolishing them would leave too great a hole in the budget.

Plaid wants the transfer of powers (to Wales) so that tolls on the bridges can be reduced, something that could have a considerable impact on businesses and the economy. With control over the bridges devolved, Plaid would cut the tolls to £2 to cover maintenance costs. Maintenance costs are some £15 million per year, but motorists and vehicles using the crossings currently generate £72 million pounds per year. While the tolls would form a useful revenue stream for Welsh Governments, Plaid’s priority is to cut the tolls.

A consultants' report (for the Welsh Government) suggested that the abolition of bridge tolls could boost the economic output in Wales by £ 107 Million pounds. By the time the two Severn Bridges come back into public ownership in 2018, it has been estimated that this cash cow may have been milked to the tune of about £ 1.029 billion pounds. What adds regular insult to regular financial injury is the fact that the old (M48) Severn Bridge continues to be periodical closed at weekends for routine maintenance, which are funded by the Department for Transport, from the public purse.

Back in October 2010, Professor Peter Midmore's independent economic study of the Severn Bridge tolls recommended that the revenues from the tolls should stay in Wales, once the crossings revert to public hands. The study of 122 businesses commissioned by the Federation of Small Businesses revealed that the tolls had a negative impact on 30% of firms in South Wales, this compared with 18% in the Greater Bristol area.

The 2010 study found that transport; construction and tourism-related companies reliant on regular crossings suffered increased costs and reduced competitiveness. The study also found that Welsh businesses were unfairly penalised by the tolls and concluded that the money should be shared with the Assembly Government and used to improve Wales’ roads and public transport.

There appears to be a general political consensus that something must be done about reducing the Severn bridge tolls – which is nice – but not particularly helpful to motorists. The ominous silence from the Department for Transport on the eventual ownership of the bridge and the potential fate of the tolls is also not particularly helpful and should be a real cause for concern. 

What worries me is that the Department of Transport (and their Westminster based masters) could find the income from the Severn bridge tolls too useful to let go. The ownership of the Severn bridges should be transferred to the National Assembly in 2018, which means that a decision needs to be made now and preparations for the transfer begun  - what we in Wales don’t need is silence from the Department for Transport.