SENEDD members from all parties have welcomed proposals for a modern, integrated public transport network for Newport and the surrounding area – and the first benefits of the plans could be seen in a year's time.

Earlier this week the Welsh Government endorsed the South East Wales Transport Commission's final recommendations for improving travel in the area, bringing together new rail, bus and active travel services to serve the region's residents and workforce.

Those measures include a series of new railway stations in the city along a renovated South Wales main line, plus plans for commuter bus corridors linking residential areas to jobs.

But deputy transport minister Lee Waters told the Senedd this week the UK Government would need to step up investment in rail infrastructure if the commission's vision is to be achieved.

"For too long, Wales has been at the back of the queue when the UK government has been investing in rail infrastructure, but this is a positive opportunity for the UK government to make good on their underinvestment," he said.

The Welsh Government says the underfunding of Welsh railway infrastructure – which is the responsibility of Westminster – between 2001 and 2029 will be at least £2.4 billion, and could rise as high as £5.1 billion.

Mr Waters said "the jury is out" on whether the UK Government would appreciate the importance of the project.

"The fact that they have not delivered our share of rail infrastructure for some time has got to make me concerned about that," he told the Senedd.

While ministers believe the commission's recommendations could take a decade to complete, there is hope some of the more straightforward improvements can be made sooner.

Some work on the bus network and active travel routes – including a Newport-Cardiff cycle expressway – could be achieved "within a period of a year or so," Mr Waters said.

Bus travel may be easier to revolutionise than rail, because responsibility for bus transport is not shared between Cardiff Bay and Westminster.

Newport East MS John Griffiths said "early opportunities" to encourage more bus use could include a free bus travel pilot scheme.

"It would be a very early signal of intention, and I think it would capture the imagination and the support of local people," he told the Senedd.

Mr Waters said he was "certainly prepared to look at that proposal".