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One of the main reasons many of us get into politics is to make a difference to people’s everyday lives. Sometimes its small intangible changes that have a big impact, others it’s a big fundamental change where you can see the transformation.

The electrification of the Rhymney Valley train line is one of those big changes. This investment means better connections between these Valleys communities and the capital – more trains, new faster trains, a better service. This is the first of the Core Valleys lines to be upgraded and that’s in no small part thanks to the tireless efforts and relentless representations made by Caerphilly’s former Senedd Member, my late friend Hefin David. He never left a conversation with me without reminding me how important it was to his constituents that this vital work was undertaken.

And now Hefin’s work, once again, has paid off for his community and beyond. Communities from Rhymney southwards will be better connected, helping thousands of passengers every year to travel more efficiently and more effectively.

One of my favourite things about working within the Transport brief is you can see and feel so tangibly the difference the Welsh Labour Government’s choices are making in people’s lives. 

You see it when young people get on a bus and only have to pay £1 for a single. Or when a brand new train pulls up at your train station and you can sit on a comfy seat, able to see on a screen which stops are coming up. That’s real change.

Whether people are visiting Caerphilly Castle, commuting to work in Bargoed, or travelling into Cardiff, the action taken by this Welsh Labour Government will deliver better transport and better connected communities. 

We all want to see progress in our country. We want our lives to improve, our society to get better, and we’re impatient for it. When people ask me what has Welsh Labour ever delivered, I’m so proud to say, that in transport alone, we’ve achieved a whole lot.

We’ve invested over £1 billion to upgrade and electrify railway lines just like the Rhymney Valley line, bringing more trains and fewer cancellations. We’ve got brand new trains across all parts of Wales.

We finished the Heads of the Valleys road, boosting growth in the South Wales Valleys and relieving pressure on the M4. And by March next year, we’ll have filled and prevented 200,000 potholes.

And I know that people want to see improvements on their local bus routes, so we’re bringing buses back under public control which means we can have more of a say on the number of journeys buses run and the routes that they take. Putting people before profit.

All of these are choices, led by Labour values, delivered by a Labour government. 

Transport is such a key issue for people because it’s not necessarily about the car or bus or train or bike that gets you around. It’s about where you’re going – to see loved ones, to get to your job, to visit a new place, to get to the doctors surgery or a parents’ evening.

And not only is it vital to connect communities, it is a key driver of growth. Make no mistake, growth isn’t some pie in the sky concept. Growth impacts us all. 

Imagine you’re someone looking for the newest headquarters of your business. You’re going to shop around for somewhere with a good-sized building, maybe an onsite café, and crucially you’re going to be looking for a site where people can reach easily, whether that be by public transport or good road connections. 

If an area has strong transport links, it will be a more attractive area for businesses. And new businesses being set up in the area brings with it jobs and workers. Jobs which put money into people’s pockets, and workers that might spend that money in the local area – whether it’s popping to the local coffee shop, supermarket, gym or the like. So not only does this decision impact the people that get jobs at the new business, but it also has a knock-on effect on the surrounding businesses and amenities.

The electrification of the Rhymney line is one step in the larger plan of the Welsh Labour Government to strengthen transport links across the Valleys. On top of the Heads of the Valleys road, on top of newer, more reliable trains, on top of redesigning bus routes and boosting their frequency, on top of filling potholes. 

One choice at a time, driven by the Labour value of connecting communities, we are delivering stronger transport links and a growing economy across the Valleys. Because it matters to the people who live and work there, and it matters to us.