Latest news with #WelshGovernment
Rhyl Journal
2 hours ago
- 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.'
Wales Online
7 hours ago
- Automotive
- Wales Online
Huge upgrade to 28 miles of road in Wales finally finishes after 23 years
Huge upgrade to 28 miles of road in Wales finally finishes after 23 years The last traffic cone and contraflow has been removed from the A465 Heads of the Valleys road after a long, drawn-out saga It was described as one of the UK's 'most significant infrastructure investments' (Image: John Myers ) It is Wales' most-expensive road building project ever. And now, 23 years on since the work began, traffic can finally run smoothly again in an area which has caused traffic misery for motorists. On Friday night the last traffic cone and contraflow was removed from the A465 Heads of the Valleys road. The long-awaited moment marked the completion of a 28-mile upgrade which began in 2002 and cost £2 billion. The project had been described by Welsh Government minister Jane Hutt as "one of the most significant infrastructure investments in the whole of the UK." Work to convert the A465 into a dual carriageway began in 2002 and has been carried out step by step ever since. The road links the M4 by Neath with the A40 dual carriageway at Abergavenny and ultimately the midlands of England. The final stage of the project - the section between Hirwaun and Dowlais - began in 2001. Now complete, 17.7km of new dual carriageway has been put in place, along with 6.1km of side roads, more than 14km of active travel routes, 38 new culverts to channel water, 30 new bridges and 28 retaining walls. The new road will be a 70mph dual carriageway with six junctions. How construction looked during the project (Image: Welsh Government ) The Welsh Government say the scheme has created more than 2,000 new jobs with over half of those employed living in the local area, employing 158 apprentices with just under half from the valley's region, helping to support education and skills training. As well as economic benefits the project has also created a series of environmental benefits, the Welsh Government adds. Species such as the great crested newt and marsh fritillary butterfly have been relocated and new habitats created for bats, dormouse and lapwing, and more than 55,000 trees have been planted locally, rising to an expected 120,000 by the end of the programme. Wales' transport minister Ken Skates previously said: "This project is an incredibly impressive piece of engineering and a fantastic example of how targeted investment in road infrastructure can deliver on many levels, providing jobs for the local community, improving accessibility, supporting education and skills, alongside delivering environmental benefits. "It's been a complex project which has not been without its challenges, and I would like to thank everyone who has played their part in helping us to deliver one of the largest road projects in the UK.' Article continues below Keith Jones, of the institution of civil engineers, told the BBC: "As a whole, the Heads of the Valleys project is one of the UK's biggest road upgrade projects for many years "And what's been so challenging is keeping the existing road operational while the work has gone on in some challenging and bleak terrain."
South Wales Argus
21 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Monmouth MS Peter Fox calls for better rail resilience
Monmouth MS Peter Fox has written to the Welsh Government to raise concerns about recent disruption on the Welsh Marches Line, which runs through Monmouthshire and connects Manchester and North Wales with Cardiff. Recent incidents have caused widespread delays and cancellations, including a collapsed culvert north of Hereford and structural problems with a bridge outside Cardiff Central. Mr Fox said: "Our railways are crucial to commuters and tourists across Wales. "I have two major stations in my constituency, in Abergavenny and Chepstow, which for a lot of people are their only way of commuting. "We have seen a lot of bad news around recent incidents on the Welsh Marches Line, and whilst these examples were not necessarily preventable, the knock-on effect is something that needs to be addressed. "Passengers were held up for hours, if not days by these problems, impacting on the whole network and affecting others across Wales. "I have written to the Welsh Government to ask for action to improve our resilience, to ensure that when incidents happen, passengers impact is minimalised." In his letter to the cabinet secretary for transport and north Wales, Mr Fox argued that while such incidents may not always be avoidable, the line currently lacks the resilience needed to cope with disruptions. He warned that any issues along the route have a 'dramatic effect' on the wider Welsh rail network, and called for steps to ensure essential services remain running when incidents occur.
Wales Online
a day ago
- Automotive
- Wales Online
New rules affecting roads and drivers across Wales planned
New rules affecting roads and drivers across Wales planned The Welsh Government has proposed changes to help the transition to a new future A new rule for driveways in England came into force this Thursday (May 29) and something similar looks on the way for Wales (Image: InYourArea ) A new law coming into force in England could soon be repeated in Wales. From this week, people in England will no longer need to submit planning applications in order to install electric vehicle chargers, a law which will effect every household in England. The Labour government hopes that this new law will streamline the process of installing EV chargers and therefore reduce months of delays and possibly saving drivers £1,100 a year. They say it will give drivers more chargepoints, with less red tape. In April this year, the Welsh Government published a consultation which proposes to change the development rules around EV charging infrastructure. The proposals would bring Wales further in line with provisions in Scotland and England by removing the 2m from a highway restriction and, in certain instances, increasing the height limit of chargers to 2.7m. The Welsh Government said: "The number of EV charging points across Wales needs to increase to support the anticipated growth in electric vehicle usage, and to align with Net Zero Wales targets and UK Government's proposed ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030/35. "Reliable and comprehensive charging infrastructure is needed to support this transition. "The changes will further facilitate the roll-out of electric vehicle charge points in line with predicted growth in use of electric vehicles and to ensure sufficient charging infrastructure is available to support zero emission vehicle targets." Other changes to permitted development rights in Wales laid out in the consultation include increased provision for air source heat pumps and increased rights for recreation campsites. The Future of Roads Minister, Lilian Greenwood, called England's move a boost for the "EV revolution". Love dreamy Welsh homes? Sign up to our newsletter here . She added: "We continue to make the switch to EVs easier, cheaper and better by investing over £2.3billion to support drivers and back British carmakers through international trade deals - creating jobs, boosting investment and securing our future as part of our Plan for Change." Osprey Charging Network's operations director, Lewis Gardiner, said changes in England would make a "real difference". He continued: "Removing the need for planning permission for essential electrical infrastructure like substations across the majority of sites will save months of delays, reduce costs and accelerate the delivery of the rapid charging hubs drivers need." Article continues below Research by Autotrader shows that the number of EV chargers in the UK rose from by 30,000 at the end of 2021, to 77,000 as of March 2025. The Welsh Government consultation runs until July 1, 2025. It can be viewed here.
North Wales Live
a day ago
- Automotive
- North Wales Live
A494 closures start next week to fix 1,400 potholes
A major programme to repair potholes on some of Wales' main roads gets underway in Flintshire next week. More than 1,400 potholes are to be fixed on a 5km stretch of the A494 Mold bypass. The work forms part of a £25m road maintenance scheme announced by the Welsh Government earlier this month. In total, work is to take place at 22 road sections on the national network. The initiative aims to improve more than 100km of road whilst removing around 30,000 potholes. The repair blitz is also targeting the A470, where more than 1,000 potholes are fixed along a 3.4km stretch near Caersws, Powys. Resurfacing work means disruption for drivers, and the A494 Mold bypass is to be closed initially for five nights from June 2. The closures, for 'essential carriageway maintenance' will be in place between 7pm and 6am each night. Traffic will be diverted via A5119, A541 and B444. Another series of night-time closures are scheduled from June 12. During the works, day time operations will continue with convoy traffic management in place. Phase 1 closures June 2 -4: New Brighton roundabout to Wylfa roundabout June 4-5: Wylfa roundabout to Bromfield roundabout June 5-7: Bromfield roundabout to Gwernymynydd roundabout A Traffic Wales spokesperson said: 'Surface treatment works are planned from overnight with closures and diversions in place on June 2 through to the 7th. Day time working will be in place in two phases from June 4 to the 16th, with convoy traffic management in place. 'Further road marking replacement is planned with overnight closures and diversions between June 12 and 18. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox 'These works are in place to ensure existing road defects such as potholes are fixed and also that the road surface is sealed to prevent future pothole formation for the next 10-15 years.'
