1.5 Million Highways boost for Ceredigion

​Local Authorities were invited to apply for grant funding from the Welsh Government’s Local Transport Fund and Safe Routes in Communities Scheme, and Ceredigion County Council was successful in several of its grant applications.

The final section of improvements for the A486 Post Bach to Synod Inn scheme along the Ceredigion link road will receive £1.077 million of this funding. The County Council will also provide £325,000 in match funding for this scheme.

Residents in Cardigan will benefit from £109,575 for active travel improvements within the town centre, a scheme which is aimed at providing 20mph traffic calming measures and improved footways in the vicinity of Cardigan Primary School. These measures will encourage increased active travel journeys to school and the funding will include new scooter and cycle shelters at the school. The County Council will provide £6,675 in match funding, in addition to a £5,000 contribution by Cardigan Town Council.

Funding has also been received for work to make routes safer in local communities: the second phase of the Rhydypennau Primary School footway scheme will receive £104,400 and match funding of £11,600 from the County Council.

New footway improvements and 20mph traffic calming measures at Ysgol Bro Pedr will benefit from £116,250, including £9,500 in match funding from the County Council and an £8,000 contribution from Lampeter Town Council.

Work for a new footpath to Talgarreg Primary School will receive £31,500, and £3,500 of County Council match funding. This will improve pupil safety on their journeys between the school and the village hall which is used regularly by the school, following partnership working with the Village Hall Committee, who have agreed that staff and parents can use the village hall car park.

Ceredigion has also been awarded £57,637 to support its road safety education, training and publicity programme including local delivery of the Pass Plus Cymru, Kerbcraft child pedestrian training as well as motorcyclist safety and national standard cycle training and a Young Driver Initiative event.

Huw Morgan, Strategic Director for Sustainable Communities, said: “Ceredigion residents, particularly those in the south of the county, will benefit from this commitment to invest in improvements to roads and routes in these communities. The funding towards the final stage of the A486 link road improvements recognises the importance of this infrastructure to the county’s economy, while the various grant funding to improve routes and roads in local communities will help to ensure safer traveling conditions for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists alike.”

Also, the County Council has recently submitted a technical report regarding the Welsh Government-funded development work for the proposed new railway station and passenger transport interchange at Bow Street. The technical report was accompanied by a joint letter from the Council and the Mid Wales Railway Implementation Group recommending a small programme of works to complete the technical and business planning work by the end of July 2016. In response to this, the Welsh Government has decided to publish the technical report on the Welsh Government’s website and make additional funding of £111,235 available to the County Council in 2016/17 to enable this additional programme of work to be completed.