The North Wales village asking 'what now' after bypass axe

For anyone living in or visiting the small village of Llanbedr in north Wales, there's a persistent problem: traffic.

The village is a tourist hotspot, especially in the summer months, but there isn't the infrastructure to deal with large volumes of vehicles. Some residents they feel "robbed" after the Welsh Government put the brakes on building a bypass near the village last year.

Local man Karl Ciz says a bypass has been needed for the last 60 years and to pull the plug goes against the science.

"We feel that we've had our democratic voice robbed. We feel that we're being green-washed. We feel that we are the political consequence of an environmental policy.

"It's not just CO2 that matters, it's nitrous oxide, it's sulphur dioxide, it's all of those heavy particles that sit in the diesel fumes that we're breathing in everyday. It's better to have that moving instead of having it sat here in front of our homes."

For others it's not just the pollution to consider. The traffic is also causing significant congestion and obstructions to pedestrians.

Ruth Owen took her children out for a walk in their pushchair and says when she tried to walk along the village's main bridge, she was obstructed by a vehicle mounting the pavement trying to overtake a lorry.

"I had no where to go because I couldn't turn the pram around on the pavement and she [the driver] couldn't get off the pavement, so I was stuck there for about 5-10 minutes until someone got out their car and asked her to reverse off the pavement so I could get over."

A plan for a bypass had the green light in March 2020, when the Welsh Government approved a one-mile road as a way of alleviating pressure in Llanbedr.

But after spending £1.7m of taxpayers' money on the project, it became the first one to be axed when ministers announced a pause on road building in Wales. Last year the Government committed Wales to net Zero carbon emissions by 2050 and road building is not part of the plan to achieve that target. Transport currently accounts for 17% of Wales' carbon emissions.

In November, the Deputy Climate Change Minister Lee Waters announced that after a panel of transport and environmental experts visited Llanbedr, their conclusion was that it "does not align well with the new Welsh Government transport and climate policy."

Mr Waters then decided to stop the project.

When commenting on another scrapped bypass project in Chepstow, Mr Waters said, building more roads cannot be the answer to the problem.

"Generally dealing with congestion by carpeting the country with bypasses, while adding extra lanes to already jammed motorways, is simply repeating the mistakes of the past. We need a shift towards public transport."

Last month Mr Waters, announced that a North Wales Transport Commission would be established to look into connections across North Wales in both urban and rural areas.

"The Commission will build on the successful model of the South East Wales Transport Commission and the work of the North Wales Metro and will allow us to achieve our decarbonisation and modal shift aims through more efficient, high-quality transport connections across and into North Wales.

"The North Wales Transport Commission will look at all of North Wales and not just the A55 corridor."

The announcement has been welcomed by the charity Sustrans, which campaigns for better walking and cycling routes across the UK. In a statement they said:

"In order to tackle the climate emergency, we must deliver a transformation in transport and we are pleased to see Welsh Government showing commitment and making these necessary changes to deliver a sustainable Wales for all.

"It is also clear that further road building is damaging for both people and planet and the recommendations of the Roads Review Panel make it clear that an integrated and sustainable transport network is possible for Wales.

"Targeted and bold investment in schemes which demonstrate the wider societal impact of sustainable transport modes on communities should in practice see the end of major road building schemes."

It is a view shared by many others on how Wales' transport network could be improved in the years ahead. Sophie Howe, the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales thinks alternatives to rural road building are viable.

"There are lots of great community transport projects for example things like car share schemes or a community bus in those local areas that are according to what the particular place needs."

Ms Howe thinks the Fflecsi scheme which operates in Conwy is a good example of this. It runs Monday to Saturday, and can pick up and drop off passengers to places like Llanrwst, Betws y Coed, Corwen, Penmachno and Llangernyw.

She also thinks there is real opportunity for e-bike projects which she says are popping up across many rural communities and offering an alternative way to travel.

Whatever the mode of transport people choose to use in Llanbedr, how people travel around Wales is likely to be a key issue for many councils in the up and coming local elections in May.

See more on this story on Sharp End on Tuesday evening at 22:50 on ITV. You can also catch-up here.