The Roads Review Panel

On 22 June 2021, Lee Water MS, deputy minister for climate change announced a review of all new road schemes funded by the Welsh Government to be undertaken by a panel of leading experts on transport and climate change.

This panel followed from the Welsh Government announcing the freeze on new road building projects, whilst a review of highway schemes across Wales is carried out.

The Scheme

The Llanbedr Access Road scheme was being taken forward by Gwynedd Council with £7m funding from Welsh Government. Llanbedr is within Snowdonia National Park on the A496 between Barmouth and Harlech, while Llanbedr Airfield is about 1.5km west of the village.

The proposed scheme is a 1.5km north-south bypass to the west of Llanbedr, with a grade-separated junction at Mochras Road to provide access from the bypass to the airfield. The most recent (2018) cost estimate for the scheme is £15m.

It was proposed because of severe congestion during the summer caused by tourists visiting attractions, such as Shell Island campsite. This scheme was initially approved back in March 2021. As the scheme is at an advanced stage of preparation the panel chair was asked to ‘fast-track’ its review of the Llanbedr scheme.

Cancellation of Llanbedr Access Road and Bypass Scheme

The Roads Review Panel released a report on 1 November 2021, detailing the findings and reasons for cancelling the Llanbedr access road and bypass. The report outlined that the scheme “does not align well with new Welsh Government transport and climate policy”.

The key concerns raised from Panel Chair Dr Lynn Sloman MBE:

• Elements of analysis indicates an initial presumption that the scheme for a new road and greater traffic capacity was the only solution
• Inadequate consideration of whether the scale of development envisaged at the Airfield is appropriate in this location
• Alternative access road options have not been considered
• No thorough investigation of alternative options, through modal shift from car to public transport or walking and cycling, that could reduce the negative impact of traffic in Llanbedr
• The assessment of the impact of the scheme on CO2 emissions is superficial and lacking in credibility
• it seems more likely than not that the scheme will increase CO2 emissions due to induced traffic, higher speeds and embodied carbon, making it more difficult for Wales to achieve decarbonisation targets.

Lee Waters MS, deputy minister for climate change, said he had accepted the recommendations of the chair of the Welsh Government’s roads review panel and would not support any further work on the scheme.

CIHT would welcome collating members’ views on this topic area so as to inform future engagement with the Roads Review Panel.  CIHT see a need to have more of an understanding of the approach by the Roads Review Panel and their methodology for assessing future schemes such as the Llanbedr Access Road and welcome your views on this – join the discussion on CIHT Connect.

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