Pembrey exhibition on road safety investment

There will be a public exhibition in Pembrey on Friday (May 25th) explaining £558,000 worth of safe walking and cycling routes around the village.

The massive scale of the 13 elements involved will be graphically illustrated at the Pembrey Community Centre on Mountain Road between 1.30 and 7pm.

The scheme will unveil plans to improve access to the Pembrey Primary School, library, St Illtyd’s Parish Church, Pembrey Country Park, Ashburnham Golf Course, the Millennium Coastal Path, Mountain Road and the Pembrey Canal cycleway and footpath.

The path is currently being upgraded by the Council’s transport and engineering division as part of the Regional Transport Plan Walking and Cycling linkages scheme.

Works have already started and will be delivered by April next year.

County head of engineering and transport Stephen Pilliner said: “We have been successful in bidding for funding under the Welsh Government Safe Routes in Communities initiative

“We were successful in drawing down £558,068 which was the highest allocation across the whole of Wales, representing more than 10per cent of the allocation total.

“This was testimony to the innovative scheme our engineers prepared having already displayed an ability to roll out such scheme elsewhere in Carmarthenshire.

“The comprehensive programme of works has been developed to increase sustainable travel in particular walking and cycling, improve access and road safety and to reduce congestion in the Pembrey area.

“The scheme was developed in close partnership with a wide range of community partners from the Pembrey area which will continue through the construction process. The exhibition is an important part of that process to let the villagers know what is happening and ask for their views too. It is this partnership approach has allowed us to develop a scheme which will be both targeted and effective, a fact not lost on the Welsh Government.”

Pembrey county councillor Hugh Shepardson said: “It is quite tremendous that we have attracted this money for such am important scheme. Pembrey will be be much moiré attractive and safer with these important improvements.

“I want to see as many villagers as possible coming along to see what is being achieved and seek their views.”

More than £90,000 is to be spent overcoming congestion in Ashburnham Road with the introduction of a 20mph speed limit including a raised plateau, crossing point outside the school and playground, and the Ashburnham Hotel. There will be a kerbed build-out crossing including a raised plateau midway along the residential street with the necessary road markings and signage.

There will be a lighting and widening upgrade to the footpath near Stanley Bridge benefiting walkers and cyclists and shelters for walking bus meeting points near the hotel, playground and school.

There will be a splitter island crossing point on the widest section of Randall Square, a footpath provided on the boundary of the church and two cycle racks.

A footpath will be provided off the A484 down to Randall Square a traffic island and driver feedback signs.

There will be improvements to the footpath along Factory Road including a traffic signal control of the bridge leading to Pembrey Country Park which will also have a footpath. There will be speed reduction measures in Tre Nel and Waun Sidan leading to the playground.

The County Park will have a new footpath near the entrance completing missing links along the route.

Mountain Road will have improved footpath provision and friction surfacing and improved signage of bends.