THE delay faced by drivers after the introduction of controversial bus lanes in one area of Newport is just 18 seconds, a report claims.

A report by Brian Kemp, head of engineering and construction at Newport city council, found that while driving from the Coldra to the city centre at off-peak times motorists faced only an 18-second delay compared to the time before bus lanes were introduced in Chepstow Road and Clarence Place.

Mr Kemp said the scheme had increased bus use by 7 per cent above the regional average, and bus service reliability increased by 12 per cent above regional average.

He said cyclists, motorcyclists and badged hackney carriages could also use the bus lanes.

He said: "Private cars are affected in a detrimental way by bus lanes, there is no point in trying to disguise that, but we are looking at delays on average of seconds, rather than minutes."

He added that delays during peak times were going to be worse, but drivers were trying to get buses through congested traffic and people were boarding buses.

He said that outside peak times the delays faced by motorists were likely to be less than 18 seconds.

Bus lanes in Cardiff Road and Malpas Road are due to be monitored in 2005.

Councillor Matthew Evans said the report was one-sided and was an anti-car stance.

He said: "There is no mention of increased vehicle pollution from cars standing still, emitting more emissions, and the affect on business.

"For motorists and everyone else in Newport the situation is intolerable. We need to do something urgently."

A spokeswoman for the RAC said: "We support bus lanes as long as they get the traffic moving through the city.

"If the bus lanes are causing serious congestion, then perhaps Newport city council might look into other ways of reducing it."