Consultation

The Economy, Infrastructure and Skills Committee will undertake an inquiry into the Welsh Government’s plans for the next Wales and Borders Rail Franchise and the next stage in development of the South Wales Metro.

The Committee is looking at the following issues:

• The effectiveness of the Welsh Government’s approach to the development, procurement and delivery of the rail franchise and South Wales Metro, including key risks and how they can be mitigated; and
• Priorities for the franchise specification and Metro delivery to ensure rail services meet the needs of current and future travellers throughout the franchise area, and deliver value for money for both passengers and the taxpayer.

Evidence

The committee has requested evidence from a range of experts and service providers. We are keen to hear evidence from service providers, industry experts, business representatives, academics and consumer groups.

Providing written evidence

The Committee welcomes written contributions in English or Welsh, and asks organisations with Welsh Language policies or schemes to provide bilingual submissions, in line with their public information policies.

Submissions should be no longer than five sides of A4, with numbered paragraphs, and should focus on matters set out above. Please see guidance for those providing evidence for committees.

Please send your views to:  SeneddEIS@assembly.wales by 23 February 2017. It may not be possible to take into account responses received after this date.

Disclosure of information

Please ensure that you have considered the Assembly’s policy on disclosure of information before submitting information to the Committee.

Survey

If you're a rail user we'd like to hear your views. We will use your contributions as we take evidence and make recommendations to feed into the Welsh Government's negotiations. We want to ensure that the new contract for rail services in Wales takes the needs of passengers into account, and that the contract provides value for money for passengers and the taxpayer. The survey can be found here:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/rail-metro