A Commons committee has backed moves to expand the Welsh assembly's powers over transport policy.

Members of the Welsh affairs select committee said the draft Transport (Wales) Bill would allow ministers in Cardiff to deliver an integrated transport policy.

The planned legislation would establish a requirement to prepare and publish a Welsh transport strategy.

The move was backed by the MPs, who added that the strategy should consider the interests of cyclists and sustainable development.

And the committee also said that English local authorities on the Welsh border should be consulted on the strategy.

On plans for the Welsh assembly to be granted powers to approve local transport plans to ensure that they are compatible with the national strategy, the MPs said: "It is a necessary power, but one that will need to be sympathetically exercised.

"We recommend that the Bill reflects the partnership approach to transport that characterises relations between the National Assembly and local authorities."

The report also called for provisions to allow the the National Assembly to create a transport passengers' committee for Wales and to provide route franchising of buses in the principality.

Committee co-operation

In reviewing the draft legislation, the committee worked in partnership with the Welsh assembly's economic development and transport committee.

"This was the first time that a House of Commons committee has met formally with a committee of a devolved administration to scrutinise a draft Bill.

"Those meetings demonstrated an innovative and progressive approach to pre-legislative scrutiny," said the report.

"We were able to mirror the cooperation of the UK government and the Welsh Assembly Government in their preparation of the draft Bill.

"Furthermore it avoided the unnecessary duplication of evidence that marked scrutiny of previous 'Wales only' draft bills.

"We thank the House of Commons and the National Assembly for Wales for agreeing to our request for joint working and we look forward to further successful joint meetings in the future."