SINCE M4 south of Newport. the Welsh Government gave further endorsement to the black route as the preferred alternative M4 motorway south of Newport, the media has given prominence to a range of high-profile objectors. They claim that the Gwent Levels will be destroyed and that the blue route advocated by Professor Stuart Cole is a better and cheaper option.

Close examination of the black route shows that for long stretches it travels along or outside the boundary of the levels. Where the route encroaches into the levels, the reens can be reconnected, the flora and fauna replanted, and the wildlife protected. The Southern Distributor Road cannot be improved as Professor Cole proposes, and the blue route will do little to relieve congestion. The motorway, with all its congestion problems, will thus remain unimproved.

The blue route is a smoke-and-mirrors strategy. Since 1991, over 40 routes, north, south and through Newport have been studied. The black route causes the least disruption both to people, be they residents or road users, and to the industrial and retail businesses served by the Southern Distributor Road. Now that the financing mechanism is in place, we urge the Welsh Government to proceed with this project at the earliest opportunity.

David Evans, South Rise, Llanishen,