Environmentalists Call For Assembly PFI Roads Investigation

Following widespread public concerns about the Labour Government's Private Finance Initiate (PFI) funding for new hospitals and schools, Friends of the Earth Cymru have today reiterated their concerns about PFI road-building schemes (1) and are calling on the Assembly to investigate PFI road procurement in Wales.

The environmental group have repeatedly expressed their concerns about PFI road-building schemes because the contract repayments, which can be for well over twenty years, effectively erode the ability of the coming generation to fund future environmentally friendly transport policies.

It is well established that new roads encourage more traffic and Friends of the Earth Cymru have voiced the concerns of many about the numerous environmental consequences of rising traffic levels, such as local air pollution to global warming emissions.

The group have been alarmed because changes in transport funding priorities, particularly towards public transport, are becoming more difficult to make as more of the Assembly transport budget is committed to PFI roads for decades to come.

The £100 million A55 Anglesey scheme and the £50 million Newport SDR (Southern Distributor Road) are two major PFI contracts that Friends of the Earth Cymru would like to see investigated in terms of value for money and risk transfer but also in terms of the Assembly's sustainable development remit.

Neil Crumpton, transport spokesperson for Friends of the Earth Cymru said:

'' PFI road schemes not only ensure environmentally damaging future traffic growth but they effectively tie the hands of the next generation so they cannot do much about it. Their decision-making ability has been taken from them because the budget has already been committed. This is socially unjust and not sustainable development in our view.

If today's politicians dare not argue the case for less road building in spite of the known dangers of traffic growth and car dependency, they should at least persuade today's taxpayers to pay for today's decisions, so as not to saddle children with them.

The A55 was reported to cost about £100 million. Yet the A55 Anglesey PFI repayments are about £16 million per annum for the next 25 years or so. That could fund twenty large public transport projects or services. So we ask the Assembly to investigate the budget alternatives and consider PFI road-building with respect to sustainable development policy.''

Notes

1) Friends of the Earth Cymru have voiced concerns about PFI road-building including at the A55 Anglesey public inquiries and in the media. The group put forward a less expensive single A55 carriageway scheme which they say should have been funded by today's taxpayer.