£12 million boost for county roads

CARMARTHENSHIRE is to benefit from a £12.4 million cash boost for road improvements across the county.

The money is being made available through the Local Government Borrowing Initiative (LGBI) to fund capital highway projects over the next three years.

Local authorities can draw down a total of £170 million as part of the borrowing arrangement, the first of its kind in Wales.

The Welsh Government will then provide revenue support to finance the cost of interest and capital repayments over a 22-year time frame.

The level of borrowing available to Carmarthenshire County Council is £4.3 million in 2012/13, £4.1 million in 2013/14 and £4 million in 2014/15.

For 2012/13, the council plans to spend £2.5 to £3 million of the capital funding on resurfacing works, £0.5 to £1 million on footway repairs, £300,000 on lighting column replacements and £500,000 on bridge strengthening.

Director of Technical Services Richard Workman said the funding would be used to target the existing backlog of carriageway and footway repairs in the county.

He said: “We welcome this funding which will enable us to improve the condition of the road network in Carmarthenshire and increase safety for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians. Unfortunately, there has been a large gap between the amount of money needed to bring roads in Wales up to standard and the amount being spent each year.

“The carriageway and footway repair schemes will be ranked according to various condition surveys that have been undertaken and the works to bridges and highway lighting columns is based on the structural assessments that have been carried out, identifying substandard bridges and lighting columns that are in need of strengthening/replacement.

“The condition of our roads is a top concern for residents and this money will allow significant progress to be made in improving the standard of our highways.”