A remote Welsh village has been engaged in a six-decade battle to try and sort out a serious traffic issue. Llanbedr in Gwynedd has a problem - its road. The A496 has brought traffic hell, say villagers, who desperately want a relief road.
Currently, the road is the only major route through this part of Gwynedd, meaning lorries, buses, ambulances and all the regular traffic are forced to use it, crossing over a 17th century bridge not designed for modern traffic. This frequently causes vast amounts of traffic to build up in the centre of the village, often leading to hours-long traffic jams.
A go-ahead was initially given for a £14m bypass, but this was placed on hold when the Welsh Government announced the roads review into every highways scheme in Wales in 2021, and later scrapped. Now, Deputy Climate Change minister Lee Waters, who has responsibility for transport, has said the village will get a road, just not a bypass. You can get more story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
