Welsh government to suspend all future road-building plans

[orudge]

So are we going to be stuck with the current A494 Aston Hill for another 15-20 years or will the A494/A548/A55 project still go ahead, I wonder?

[rhyds]

So are we going to be stuck with the current A494 Aston Hill for another 15-20 years or will the A494/A548/A55 project still go ahead, I wonder?

The "red route" A548 plan is one of the ones being reviewed. I'm guessing that it might get the go ahead instead of the A55 Menai bridge upgrades as NE Wales is definitely Labour territory and the Conservatives ran them close (the Humber bridge approach to transport planning).

[Bryn666]

There's a compelling safety argument for sorting out the A494. The WG has left themselves a sensible clause to approve road plans there.

[roadtester]

Is the Britannia Bridge actually a bottleneck?

Obviously it goes without saying that it's below the standard of the modern dual carriageway sections on either side of it but is it actually a pinch point in capacity terms? I don't ever recall it being jammed when I've been through - although admittedly I've only used it about half a dozen times.

[rhyds]

Is the Britannia Bridge actually a bottleneck?

Obviously it goes without saying that it's below the standard of the modern dual carriageway sections on either side of it but is it actually a pinch point in capacity terms? I don't ever recall it being jammed when I've been through - although admittedly I've only used it about half a dozen times.

Because Porthaethwy/Menai Bridge and Llanfairpwll are functionally "North Bangor" both the Menai crossings tend to back up around the morning/evening peaks. Add in the long distance ferry traffic and the Britannia bridge closing in high winds and problems do happen. The main issue is the narrowing from D2 to S2 just as the traffic from the A5/Llanfairpwll merges Eastbound. Westbound traffic from the A487 Parc Menai junction has a bit more weaving space so generally copes better.

EDIT: The other reason for the upgrade was the expected extra traffic of the Wylfa Newydd nuclear station, which is no longer looking like its going to happen.

[Bryn666]

The effect of wind closures is the real problem as you can't send anything large over the old bridge. It makes you wonder how the hell anyone got anything large to Anglesey before 1980 by road.

[rhyds]

I'm guessing they used managed closures and probably just barged/shipped things in. The only really big stuff on Ynys Mon is Caergybi/Holyhead, Wylfa and Anglesey Aluminium.

[Bryn666]

Will Brexit have a massive effect on Holyhead - the lane control gantries on the westbound A55 have been out of action for ages so it suggests there's no panic for a semi-permanent Welsh equivalent of Operation Brock - or is it just that the WG has better things to do with its time than pull propaganda stunts like that?

[rhyds]

If/When GB/IRE traffic gets back to normal I suspect that any delays will lead to the A55 being used as parking, as Holyhead is a very small port but does handle a lot of traffic.

[WHBM]

One assumes that under the Barnett Formula, which allocates central government funds to Wales, Scotland, etc, and breaks this calculation down across specific expenditure heads, the figure for Welsh roadbuilding will be zeroed, if they are not going to do anything with it. So really this is more an upside for The Treasury.

[Bryn666]

If/When GB/IRE traffic gets back to normal I suspect that any delays will lead to the A55 being used as parking, as Holyhead is a very small port but does handle a lot of traffic.

Apparently second busiest after Dover - but plenty of space along the A55 to stack vehicles apparently with the A5 being brought back into service for everyone else. Sounds a sensible plan given reporting about plans but also seems to be very less reliant on giving £megabuxx contracts to TM crews too.

[rhyds]

One assumes that under the Barnett Formula, which allocates central government funds to Wales, Scotland, etc, and breaks this calculation down across specific expenditure heads, the figure for Welsh roadbuilding will be zeroed, if they are not going to do anything with it. So really this is more an upside for The Treasury.

That's not how it works.

The UK/Westminster expenditure for devolved areas is allocated via the BF as a block grant to the Welsh Government, who are then free to spend that block as they wish on those devolved areas. Not spending it on roads projects simply means more funding available for other devolved responsibilities.

[rhyds]

If/When GB/IRE traffic gets back to normal I suspect that any delays will lead to the A55 being used as parking, as Holyhead is a very small port but does handle a lot of traffic.

Apparently second busiest after Dover - but plenty of space along the A55 to stack vehicles apparently with the A5 being brought back into service for everyone else. Sounds a sensible plan given reporting about plans but also seems to be very less reliant on giving £megabuxx contracts to TM crews too.

I'd suggest the major difference is that unlike Kent there isn't a massive amount of local traffic generated by Bodedern and Valley (even if they do have Stermat) and losing the D2 A55 isn't as much of an issue.

[the cheesecake man]

Not really, as there is next to no traffic from north to south in Wales. The enormous majority of improvements have been on east-west routes for a reason

Chicken/egg.

An egg laid by topography.

[WHBM]

Apparently second busiest after Dover

More than the Channel Tunnel ???

[Bryn666]

Apparently second busiest after Dover

More than the Channel Tunnel ???

Last I checked the Channel Tunnel wasn't a ferry port.

[wrinkly]

This has been mentioned in another thread and deserves to be mentioned in this one.

There has been an update on the Welsh roads review. The scheme to remove the A55 roundabouts at Penmaenmawr and Llanfairfechan will not go ahead.

This page lists 10 schemes that have escaped the review (9 listed at the beginning and one at the end) and lists over 50 that will be subject to the review:

https://gov.wales/roads-review

A fuller account is here:

https://gov.wales/wales-roads-review-in ... nel-report

[wrinkly]

An awful lot of the schemes listed are cases where I had no idea there was a scheme or even a study.

In the noughties the Welsh government used to publish occasional lists of everything in the trunk road programme, but I think this is the first I've since 2008.

[M19]

I do find this almost blanket ban a backward move. But seemingly it’s driven more by politics and ideology with a good dose of new roads = climate armageddon.

Let’s see how they get on with the miracles of active travel and public transport as panaceas for dissolving congestion.

[SteveA30]

It will be followed by England and Scotland at some point. The tide is turning away from roads. The A465 may be the last great project.