Public transport in Monmouthshire has been given a boost with the announcement that the Welsh Government has awarded the council £290,000 to improve bus stop infrastructure across the county. The award, received on 21st May, follows a successful bid for a grant by the council from the government’s Local Transport Network Fund.
The funding will enable Monmouthshire County Council to provide new bus shelters, seating, bus stop poles and flags, timetable cases, raised boarding areas and lighting in many locations. The council’s initial priority is to install new shelters at Abergavenny, Chepstow and Monmouth Bus Stations as well as at Thornwell Primary School and the Bulwark shopping area in Chepstow. The next measures will be to upgrade and replace broken shelters, timetable cases and seating along the X74 route between Magor, Caldicot and Chepstow, and after that, a review of existing bus infrastructure across the county will be undertaken to develop specific plans for the future.
All work in connection with the grant must be completed by 31st March next year and plans are already underway to deliver the new shelters. The X74 project will be subject to tender while the infrastructure review will require a specification before further steps can be taken.
Councillor Jane Pratt, Monmouthshire’s cabinet member for Infrastructure and Neighbourhood Services said: “This welcome funding will improve travelling by public transport in the county through increased comfort and safety as well as providing better timetabling information. I look forward to seeing the completion of these projects by next March.”