Senedd 2026 Active Travel Hustings Roundup
Living Streets Cymru , alongside Cycling UK and Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, hosted an online Active Travel Hustings on Wednesday evening (15 April), bringing together candidates for the upcoming Senedd elections in May. The event gave candidates the opportunity to outline how their parties would lead progress towards making Wales’ streets safer, healthier and cleaner – places where everyone can walk, wheel or cycle with confidence.
The event was chaired by journalist Will Hayward and featured candidates from the Green Party, Plaid Cymru, Welsh Labour and the Liberal Democrats, all of whom set out their active travel priorities. Candidates were also given the opportunity to answer questions from the audience on a wide range of topics including safety for women and girls, improving outcomes from the 20mph speed limit, active travel in rural areas, pavement parking and enforcement and funding for active travel. The Welsh Conservatives and Reform UK were also invited to attend.
Here's a summary of what each candidate said:
Green Party - Paul Rock
Paul Rock highlighted the Green Party’s pledge to allocate 10% of Wales’s transport budget to active travel. He argued that new cycling infrastructure should prioritise reallocating road space, rather than encroaching on parks or green spaces.
He also stressed that new housing developments must be better planned, ensuring neighbourhoods are well connected by public transport and active travel routes. For rural areas, Paul suggested that disused railway lines could be repurposed into appealing walking and cycling connections between towns and villages.
Plaid Cymru - Peredur Owen Griffiths
Peredur Owen Griffiths representing Plaid Cymru voiced support for Vision Zero, stating that death and serious injury should not be considered inevitable on Wales’s streets. He emphasised the importance of integrating public transport with active travel infrastructure, and planning for a future that relies on fewer cars.
On safety for women and girls, he highlighted the need for improved lighting, CCTV, and education. He also acknowledged the significant impact of pavement parking, particularly for families walking and wheeling to school.
Labour - Huw Thomas
Representing Welsh Labour , Huw Thomas reaffirmed the party’s pledge to continue investment in active travel and buses. He stressed that the success of the 20mph speed limit depends heavily on physical infrastructure, such as speed calming measures. Huw also spoke about the importance of educating businesses on the benefits of active travel. He referred to Living Streets’ research, which found that people who arrive on foot often spend more locally.
Additionally, he mentioned continued investment into the National Cycle Network and ensuring it doesn’t only cater to tourists, and the need for greater enforcement powers for police and traffic wardens to tackle pavement parking.
Liberal Democrats - Steve Aicheler
Steve Aicheler outlined the Liberal Democrat’s approach of making decisions locally, rather than ‘top-down’. On women’s safety, he emphasised the importance of street safety assessments and meaningful engagement with women’s groups to ensure safety concerns are properly addressed.
For rural communities, he suggested adding pavements to rural roads where possible to support walking. Steve also suggested that for pavement parking, focus should be on high traffic areas rather than residential roads when discussing pavement parking restrictions .
Reflections...
The discussions on Wednesday evening demonstrated cross-party recognition of the importance of Active Travel in Wales’s future transport system. Across the evening, candidates repeatedly returned to the importance of safer streets, better integration with public transport and the need for investment that enables people to walk, wheel and cycle with confidence in both urban and rural settings. These conversations underline the importance of holding candidates to account on delivering genuinely inclusive, people centred streets.
About the author
Amy Jones
Policy Associate, Living Streets
[email protected]