Latest news with #StormChristoph
Wales Online
11-08-2025
- Climate
- Wales Online
Landslide fix for 'invaluable' road nearing completion after five-year nightmare
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Landslide repairs to a key Wrexham road are nearing fulfillment, according to a council report. Having been closed for more than four-and-a-half years, remediation work on the B5605 is edging towards 'substantial completion'. The road between Newbridge and Cefn Mawr has been closed since Storm Christoph in January 2021. Heavy downpours caused part of the road to collapse down the Gelli Wood embankment into the River Dee, forcing drivers to take lengthy diversions. Funding challenges meant renovations didn't start until 2024. The scheme was scheduled for completion this summer but 'unforeseen circumstances' meant this was revised to 'Q3 2025'. A local councillor has said he expects the work to finish in October. At the start of the year major shotcrete and underpinning work stabilised the upper section of the bank beneath the old road. A temporary access track was built down to the river following some minor tree felling. The most critical part of the project was the construction of a bored piled wall beneath the road near the river. This was designed both to support the rebuilt embankment and to protect it from river scouring. An update sent to councillors last week detailed recent work on the complex engineering project. The new reinforced concrete retaining wall has emerged over the summer and is now complete. Some 12,000 tonnes of in-fill stone are being brought to the site to rebuild the embankment. This is being added in layers and compressed to create the required profile. Sign up now for the latest news on the North Wales Live Whatsapp community (Image: Jones Bros/Wrexham Council) To guard against 'soft spots' in the compressed embankment, contractors Jones Bros wrote: 'Nuclear Density Testing (NDT) is being carried out and this exercise will be repeated on each layer going forward. 'Some soft spot areas identified during the compaction testing have been remediated.' Traditional stone walls are also being built alongside the 'Fisherman Path' to soften the visual impact of the brutal concrete retaining structure. Following the in-fill operation, the road itself will be reconstructed before the route can reopen to traffic. The final step will be to place a ready-built parapet wall along the road - this is being manufactured off site. Alterations to street lighting are underway already, with new pillars being installed and old columns being removed. (Image: Jones Bros/Wrexham Council) In its latest report, Jones Bros added: 'The reinstatement of the embankment supporting the realigned highway is continuing as programmed. 'The final embankment will be subject to landscaping works and as the scheme proceeds towards substantial completion, necessary cyclic maintenance works will continue to be arranged both to the north and south of the 'slip area' in anticipation of opening the project to through traffic.' When the road collapsed in January 2021, it saw some journeys extended by up to 15 miles, causing huge frustration for residents and local businesses. Drivers have been unable to use the road as a diversion route when the A483 viaducts are closed by bad weather or traffic incidents. On occasions this has caused gridlock in Llangollen, the alternative diversion route further along the Dee Valley. (Image: Wrexham Council) In its early stages the project was blocked by the Welsh Government because it would 'only benefit the highway', so falling outside the criteria for storm damage funding to reduce residential flooding. The breakthrough came in May 2022 after Wrexham Council submitted a business case following complex geo-technical surveys. The Welsh Government awarded the full £2.8m funding, with officials accepting the road's importance as both a local link and a diversion route for the A483 trunk road. Cardiff subsequently awarded another £2.6m, bringing the scheme's final cost to almost £5.6m. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox Last year Ken Skates, cabinet member for transport and North Wales, said the restored road would be 'invaluable for everybody'. Find out what's happening on the roads near you
North Wales Live
11-08-2025
- Climate
- North Wales Live
Landslide fix for 'invaluable' road nearing completion after five-year nightmare
Landslide repairs to a key Wrexham road are nearing fulfillment, according to a council report. Having been closed for more than four-and-a-half years, remediation work on the B5605 is edging towards 'substantial completion'. The road between Newbridge and Cefn Mawr has been closed since Storm Christoph in January 2021. Heavy downpours caused part of the road to collapse down the Gelli Wood embankment into the River Dee, forcing drivers to take lengthy diversions. Funding challenges meant renovations didn't start until 2024. The scheme was scheduled for completion this summer but 'unforeseen circumstances' meant this was revised to 'Q3 2025'. A local councillor has said he expects the work to finish in October. At the start of the year major shotcrete and underpinning work stabilised the upper section of the bank beneath the old road. A temporary access track was built down to the river following some minor tree felling. The most critical part of the project was the construction of a bored piled wall beneath the road near the river. This was designed both to support the rebuilt embankment and to protect it from river scouring. An update sent to councillors last week detailed recent work on the complex engineering project. The new reinforced concrete retaining wall has emerged over the summer and is now complete. Some 12,000 tonnes of in-fill stone are being brought to the site to rebuild the embankment. This is being added in layers and compressed to create the required profile. To guard against 'soft spots' in the compressed embankment, contractors Jones Bros wrote: 'Nuclear Density Testing (NDT) is being carried out and this exercise will be repeated on each layer going forward. 'Some soft spot areas identified during the compaction testing have been remediated.' Traditional stone walls are also being built alongside the 'Fisherman Path' to soften the visual impact of the brutal concrete retaining structure. Following the in-fill operation, the road itself will be reconstructed before the route can reopen to traffic. The final step will be to place a ready-built parapet wall along the road - this is being manufactured off site. Alterations to street lighting are underway already, with new pillars being installed and old columns being removed. In its latest report, Jones Bros added: 'The reinstatement of the embankment supporting the realigned highway is continuing as programmed. 'The final embankment will be subject to landscaping works and as the scheme proceeds towards substantial completion, necessary cyclic maintenance works will continue to be arranged both to the north and south of the 'slip area' in anticipation of opening the project to through traffic.' When the road collapsed in January 2021, it saw some journeys extended by up to 15 miles, causing huge frustration for residents and local businesses. Drivers have been unable to use the road as a diversion route when the A483 viaducts are closed by bad weather or traffic incidents. On occasions this has caused gridlock in Llangollen, the alternative diversion route further along the Dee Valley. In its early stages the project was blocked by the Welsh Government because it would 'only benefit the highway', so falling outside the criteria for storm damage funding to reduce residential flooding. The breakthrough came in May 2022 after Wrexham Council submitted a business case following complex geo-technical surveys. The Welsh Government awarded the full £2.8m funding, with officials accepting the road's importance as both a local link and a diversion route for the A483 trunk road. Cardiff subsequently awarded another £2.6m, bringing the scheme's final cost to almost £5.6m. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox Last year Ken Skates, cabinet member for transport and North Wales, said the restored road would be 'invaluable for everybody'.
Leader Live
28-07-2025
- Automotive
- Leader Live
Councillor suggests Newbridge Road to reopen in October
The B5605 road was subject to a landslip in 2021 during Storm Christoph, and has remained closed ever since, with January 25, 2025 marking the fourth anniversary of the closure. Its closure has proven a huge frustration for residents, and caused traffic "chaos" in Llangollen and surrounding areas when the A483 viaducts are closed during inclement weather. In April 2022, £2.8m of Welsh Government funding was secured to repair it, with hopes the road would be open towards the end of 2023. However, further delays meant that work didn't start at the site until summer 2024. A planning application was finally submitted in May 2024 by Contractors Jones Bros, and work has taken place at the site. Wrexham Council gave an estimated completion date of spring 2025 - despite concerns of funding. An update sent out to councillors in July 2024 detailed the type of work that could be expected in recent months, and that there were hopes the work would be completed by May 2025. However, work is continuing to take place at the site, and councillor Derek Wright has suggested he believes the road won't be open until October. Cllr Wright said: "We were given an update in June and showed what work was still required. "In the last update the council suggested it would be done by the end of summer, so I'm now saying to residents that it should be reopened in October. MOST READ: New tenant set to move into two of Island Green's former retail sites Shoplifter arrested while 'eating stolen sausage roll' at Co-op, court told Woman loses licence for failing to give sample after 'drink-drive suspicion' "The residents just want it done now, they're sick of it and just want it open. It's an inconvenience for everybody, especially when the bypass is closed and people are getting directed here there and everywhere. "It's been a nuisance for five years. There are concerns about [whether] the bus services will go back to what they were before the road closed, but the issue is people don't know what normal is anymore. "The work has improved greatly, and they are getting through it in stages." Wrexham Council are expected to publish a report on the progress at Newbridge Road in the coming weeks.
Rhyl Journal
01-06-2025
- Politics
- Rhyl Journal
Plans to rebuild Llanerch Bridge scrapped despite £1.5m spent
The cabinet yesterday (Tuesday) considered a report on rebuilding Llanerch Bridge after the original structure was destroyed during Storm Christoph in January 2021, when the River Clwyd burst its banks. Council officers warned that if they drilled into the riverbed, it could contaminate a water supply to 85,000 homes. That's because the old bridge was above a vital freshwater aquifer that Dwr Cymru Welsh Water use to supply drinking water to residents. Councillors heard how drilling into sandstone layers could create fissures, contaminating the lake. MORE: Rhyl man 'who just wanted to get home from Chester' fined for drunken abuse Paul Jacksons, the council's head of highways and environmental services. said: 'There's not been a design solution that has been found that completely removes the risk to that water asset. 'Therefore, the detailed design stage has concluded that it is not possible to construct a new bridge without the required foundations penetrating the weathered section of sandstone and putting a potential fissure in the aquifer, and again, interrupting that water supply. 'Welsh Water has stated that drilling into the aquifer would ultimately create a pathway for the risk of the water supply being contaminated, and that could lead to several factors, including risk and safeguarding their customers. 'It is a public health risk, and Welsh Water has stated that should the risk come to fruition, rectifying the issues created by drilling into the ground would be far from straightforward and extremely costly to resolve. It may not even be feasible to repair if we drill a physical pathway into the aquifer.' MORE: Rhyl mum and daughter create detailed post box topper in tribute to Mike Peters He added: 'They consider this to be extremely high risk, and they would suggest we don't go ahead with this project.' Mr Jackson said every design possible had been considered. Last week, backbench councillors Chris Evans and James Elson argued about the inconvenience and extra cost to residents, raising the solution of a temporary bridge. The pair said not building a bridge drastically affected the lives of residents in Tremeirchion, Rhuallt, Bodfari, Cwm, as well as those in Trefnant, Denbigh, Henllan, and Ruthin, particularly with the rise in the cost of fuel. £1.5 million of Welsh Government funds has already been spent on the design work of the project. Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Alan James also raised the matter of building a temporary bridge. But Mr Jackson said a temporary bridge would still require the same foundations, so the risk would remain, arguing the proposal was unfeasible. Leader Cllr Jason McLellan warned the cabinet: 'If we go ahead and start construction, knowing the risk to the damage to the aquifer, we essentially owe a duty of care to Welsh Water's customers that their water supply won't be affected, and quite clearly the advice is that it might be, so that chain of events would mean that we would be negligent and liable. 'We haven't got insurance, so we wouldn't be able to go through the insurance route. We would be liable, and it could potentially be millions. You think what the number of days without water looks like, without the ability to run a tap, boil the kettle, flush your toilet, have a shower. What does that look like for 85,000 homes after two days, three days, four days a week. Our liability would be off the scale.' Mr Jackson said the council would improve the road network, with £950,000 already secured from Welsh Government to upgrade 'alterative routes' and the diversion to make it 'more pleasurable for commuters'. But Cllr James Elson said the council had promised the residents a bridge. 'We must deliver on that promise,' he said. He added there must be a solution such as a single-track bridge or a temporary 'pre-fabricated' bridge set on benches without drilling. He said the cost of such a bridge would be less than the £1.5m Denbighshire had already spent, claiming he had been given a quote by a construction company two years ago. Mr Jackson reiterated a temporary bridge wasn't possible, explaining a bridge without foundations could present a danger to 'life and limb' during a flood. Cllr Chris Evans then echoed Cllr Elson's comments. 'There has been very little engagement from Denbighshire Council, which has had a detriment to this project,' he said. 'This again has had a massive impact on residents, feeling the bridge is not going to get built. It has been gone for four-odd years, and we have spent, or Welsh Government have spent, £1.5m to get to a set of drawings. I think that issue alone needs to be taken to the audit and governance committee.' Cllr Evans then claimed that a local building contractor had indicated to him a bridge was possible. 'We have not looked with conviction at the temporary bridge,' he said. 'I don't mean to be disrespectful, but Jones Brothers builds motorways. He is the person that does the job. He is the knowledgeable chap that has looked at that.' He added: 'The residents want a crossing.' Cllr Evans added residents and businesses were suffering and children couldn't get to school. He asked the cabinet to defer the decision so the matter could go to full council. But Cllr McLellan said that would put Denbighshire in the 'line of fire' for future litigation. Corporate director Tony Ward said officers couldn't win, having been criticised for spending £1.5m on designs, with it also being suggested they hadn't done enough. Cllr Gwyneth Ellis questioned whether a smaller bridge would need the same foundations, but Mr Jackson explained the foundations needed were due to the water pressure, not the weight on any bridge. The cabinet voted unanimously in favour of ceasing work on the project.
Rhyl Journal
31-05-2025
- General
- Rhyl Journal
'Very weak excuse' to scrap Llanerch Bridge says expert
At a cabinet meeting this week, Denbighshire Council voted to abandon plans to replace Llanerch Bridge, which was destroyed during Storm Christoph in 2021 when the River Clwyd burst its banks. Council officers warned cabinet members that drilling into the riverbed could contaminate a water supply to 85,000 homes and that if the council persisted with the bridge, the authority could be liable for millions of pounds. The decision caused controversy in the chamber as the council had promised residents the bridge, which would reconnect Trefnant and Tremeirchion, before Welsh Water raised concerns about the contamination of a freshwater aquifer. The council spent £1.5m of Welsh Government funds designing the new bridge. Now, retired civil engineer David Evans, from Caersws, says he doesn't believe the council is correct in cancelling its plans to build a new bridge. Mr Evans said he worked in a number of different roles in piling in civil engineering, including the design, management, and tendering processes, working with several notable specialist companies such as Cementation and Expanded Piling Ltd. 'I am a retired civil engineer, now living in mid-Wales, and in all my 35 years within the piling industry, working with major piling contractors covering the UK, with experience of many types of bored piling for bridges, multi-storey buildings etc, this is a very weak excuse for not building a much-needed bridge,' he said. 'Contamination of an aquifer has never been a discussion point in the industry, and given bored piles founded in sandstone, migration of water will just not happen, as the piles are concreted almost immediately. 'Most modern bridges require piled foundations to take out the sheer forces from breaking, but also provide a fixing in more competent strata to avoid erosion and improve scour protection from flooding.' He added: 'The county council would be well advised to approach piling contractors and competent geotechnical engineering companies to confirm my views, providing them with the site investigation report.' Mr Evans' opinion mirrors that of Cllr James Elson. Cllr Elson told council officers at the cabinet meeting that local contractors, who'd worked on the A55, maintained a temporary bridge lasting 10 years could be built. Tremeirchion councillor Chris Evans told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he was 'disappointed' in the cabinet decision. Cllr Evans speculated what might happen if other bridges, such as Pont y Cambwll or an A55 flyover bridge at St Asaph or Rhuallt, were compromised or needed foundation repairs. 'If Pont y Cambwll was taken (by bad weather or flooding), are we going to be in the same predicament?' he said. 'Residents have come to me and said bridges over the A55 are over that aquifer. 'What would happen if one of those bridges were damaged or the footings needed addressing? 'I'm disappointed by it. I understand Denbighshire's concerns. 'But we need a positive outcome of this for the residents. They have known about the aquifer from day dot, so why have we persisted with £1.5m of public money. I think audit and governance need to look at this. That's a lot of money.' A Denbighshire Council spokesperson said: 'Denbighshire County Council has worked through an entire optioneering and design consultation phase with Balfour Beatty over several years which included comprehensive ground surveys, geological studies of the location, erosive flow of the river, and physical constraints of the area. 'It was always the desire and intention of the Council to replace the bridge and as such £1.5m of direct Welsh Government funding was spent to ensure a robust process could be conducted to outline options and fully assess these options against the associated risks and issues from a design and construction perspective. 'Unfortunately, no design option could be found that completely eliminated the risk of damage to the freshwater aquifer and the drinking water supply to 85,000 properties in the North Wales area both during and after construction activity. 'Any form of bridge design whether temporary or permanent required foundations installed to a minimum depth in order to support the structure during periods of flooding or heavier river flow. 'Failure to install such foundations would present a risk of the structure collapsing and potentially presents a danger to life if it were to collapse during such times. 'As such, in cooperation with Dŵr Cymru, it was agreed to recommend ceasing the bridge building project in order to safeguard this water supply, a decision that was ratified by Cabinet this week. 'The Council is unable to comment on the views of external third parties who have not been involved in the design process. 'It is intended that DCC representatives will hold a public meeting with the local community groups to fully explain this decision and discuss their concerns.'
