A VITAL step towards Newport city centre's regeneration now has the go-ahead, with the approval of plans for an £8.5 million road network.

The new traffic infrastructure will link in with the £200 million Modus development of Newport city centre.

Plans include: - making Usk Way dual-carriageway; - transforming the Kingsway and Queensway into boulevards; - improving Emlyn Street, Granville Street and the surrounding junctions. Emlyn Street itself will form the main access route to the new Kingsway car park.

Newport city council cabinet approved the plans last week and say the work represents a major step forward for the city centre's regeneration. The plans will go before full council for rubber-stamping.

Councillor Bob Bright, leader of the council, said: "This year is a vital one in the regeneration of the city centre, one in which many of the pieces of the regeneration jigsaw will start to fall into place."

Work on these major changes is due to start in May or June and should be completed by early 2007.

The Usk Way dualling will run from behind the Newport Centre and link up with the dual carriageway already in place leading to the Southern Distributor Bridge.

There are also plans for a row of bus stops along the Queensway which will take the overspill from the reduced-size bus station and will complement plans for a bus box scheme - a circular route around the city centre.

The bus stops will be fitted with real-time information displays giving bus times.

This Queensway boulevard will be a 20mph zone with pedestrian priority and a bus and cycleway.

The subways beneath Queensway will be closed and new pelican crossing facilities with the main crossing outside the train station will create a safer and more open environment for pedestrians.

A council spokesman said: "This new road system has always been a key part of Newport's regeneration plans since they were drawn up over five years ago."

It will enable the city centre's road and public transport network to cope with the new retail developments in the council's £200 millon Modus Corovest scheme and the multi-million pound Kingsway centre revamp.

Permission for the demolition of the Kingsway car park and the extension of the shopping area was granted by the planning committee earlier this month.

The council is negotiating with utility companies to set a date for the old car park to come down, but it is expected to be in March or April this year. The new Kingsway car park will initially cater for 1,058 cars.

Councillor Bright said: "It is pleasing to see this council making the key decisions that will take Newport's regeneration forward."