TUNNEL VISION
Cycle path joy
FUNDING has been secured to develop a 300m tunnel which will provide a key link between Bangor and Bethesda.
Currently the popular Lôn Las Ogwen cycle route runs for about four miles on the trackbed of the former railway line from Porth Penrhyn to Tregarth.
However, due to a closed tunnel users cannot reach Bethesda without having to use a diversion.
But Gwynedd Council have secured cash to develop the tunnel which is part of the former railway in Tregarth.
The work includes securing a rock at the side of the ravine, illuminating the tunnel which is 275m long and steps to safeguard users on the viaduct over the Ogwen River.
In the last financial year £200,000 was set aside for the project, on top of that £230,000 has been secured from the Welsh Government.
Council chiefs estimate maintaining the route will cost £17,000 a year to deal with seasonal growth, weather, collecting litter and vandalism.
In a report to Gwynedd Council’s executive officers state: “It is believed that including the tunnel area itself would not be too much of a burden on the budget but what is extraordinary in this case is the costs associated with illuminating the tunnel.”
Llandygai and Bethesda Com- munity Councils have expressed their willingness to cover the maintenance costs including the lighting costs.
Lon Las Ogwen is an 11 mile cycle route.
According to the council report, 100,000 journeys are made on it every year.
Locals have been lobbying the cancel to open up the tunnel since 2014, after the latest section was opened.
An officer for the council said: “Many enquiries have been received asking ‘ when will the tunnel open’.”
He continued: “Lôn Las Ogwen has the potential to be an effective medium to attract walkers and cyclists to Bethesda and on to Nant Ffrancon and Llyn Ogwen.
“Developing the tunnel and the viaduct would not only make travelling easier for visitors on foot and on bikes, but they are also attractions in themselves to be appreciated as part of the industrial heritage of the Bethesda area.”
Gwynedd Council’s executive committee have been asked to support the scheme and will discuss and vote on it on June 28.