Development bringing chaos for commuters
problems in the past two weeks have been a big concern, but the “bigger concern” is what is ahead.
“This is only the formative stage of the development and we have already seen these problems,” he said. “It is a real worry that the local authority seems to have a lack of control over the developer.”
Max, who is an engineer, said: “Other big projects like the slip road at junction 33 and the Cogan Spur were delivered a lot quicker. It is incredibly frustrating. They initially said that this part of the project was going to take four weeks, but that then got extended to seven weeks even though they are bringing more people to work on it.”
Talking about the current work between the Heol Isaf roundabout and the Westward Ho petrol station, a spokeswoman for the developer said: “Our con- tractors are currently finalising highway drainage in the southern lane of the road.
“Once that is complete, the next steps are to resurface the carriageway and install a pedestrian crossing. Then further utilities works, including existing gas main protection works and diversion of telecommunications, will be carried out further up the carriageway by the Heol Isaf roundabout.
“Once these are complete, the Heol Isaf roundabout will be removed and a four-way, signalised junction installed in its place.”
A council spokesman confirmed it had been holding meetings with the developers.
He said: “Urgent meetings are being held to discuss how further on-site measures can be put in place to ease congestion and reduce the significant impact that residents and commuters are currently facing.
“The contractor is introducing additional, manually-controlled traffic lights at peak times which will be responsive to traffic flow.
“Assurances have been given that every possible option to reduce the disruption is being explored and that the work will be carried out as quickly as possible.”
The work began in July and is not planned to end until the end of August 2020, and three more junctions still need to be built before it is finished.
When asked if late summer 2020 was still the completion date, a spokeswoman for the developers said: “The works around this section of Llantrisant Road are scheduled for completion in summer 2020, although they do not all involve working on the highway.
“We are currently going through the 2020 work schedule to minimise disruption for any work required in the carriageway. There are further works to be carried out along Llantrisant Road, including road widening for the new bus lane and cycle lane, and the construction of three new junctions, the next being between Clos Parc Radur and Goitre Fach.
“Moving forward we are planning to share more detail on these plans with the local community.”
She added: “We understand the huge amount of frustration the works at the junction of Heol Isaf and Llantrisant Road have caused.
“We have been working very closely with Cardiff council and our contractor, Alun Griffiths, to look at better and safer ways to control traffic at peak times.”
Work is also set to continue at the weekend on a dawn to dusk basis and they are going to monitor the traffic on Saturdays and Sundays to see if the manual traffic lights needed to be used then too. Councillor Rod McKerlich, who represents Radyr and Morganstown, has said the roadworks have been causing “chaos” and he is being inundated with complaints.
“I’ve lived in Radyr since 1974,” he said. “The main road originally had lots of spare capacity. It now has 13,000 vehicles travelling along it every day.
“It’s creating chaos. Permission to operate temporary traffic lights is, rightly or wrongly, a matter where the local councillor has no formal voice. It is determined by a meeting of council officers, the contractor and the developer.
“I suggested doing the work in school holidays and asked for consultation with nearby residents to see if 24-hour working could minimise the duration of the work.”
Kevin Brennan, the prospective parliamentary candidate for Cardiff West, has also written to Cardiff council calling for them to urgently look into the level of congestion.
He said: “I call on the council to take firm steps to address the situation as soon as possible because of the level of disruption being caused.”
But not everyone is upset.
One resident, who asked to remain anonymous, said: “I moved to Radyr from the Heath area in 2018 and have seen the increasing traffic since the new developments have started.
“I’ve always had concerns about how that many new homes and traffic would cope down Llantrisant Road and into Cardiff.
“At the moment it’s just roadworks but eventually with the hundreds or thousands of homes that are being built it will only get worse.
“But the utter NIMBYism of some of the residents astounds me. The people who have bought their homes years ago are now complaining that new homes are being built for young families, those same homes which were built in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s for them.
“Yes the planning could be better, and I do worry about the traffic in a few years but we will also have new schools, GP, dental surgery, shopping centre, green spaces.
“If that means I have to leave my house 10 minutes earlier then so be it.”
It is a real worry that the local authority seems to have a lack of control over the developer...
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