£1.7m pledged to build new bridge for walkers and cyclists
A NEW shared-use bridge for pedestrians and cyclists is set to change the landscape around Parc Trostre Retail Park in Llanelli, Carmarthenshire.
As part of a significant rise in funding for walking and cycling improvements across Wales, Lee Waters, the Deputy Economy Minister for Wales, confirmed £1.7m of funding for the bridge which will cross over the A484.
The proposal has secured Welsh Government Active
Travel funding and is part of a wider network of routes which will eventually connect Hendy in the north to the Millennium Coastal Path in the south.
The bridge (an artist impression is pictured above) will continue a direct route following an old railway line and connect with works recently completed up to Halfway and along Coedcae Road leading to Stebonheath and Coedcae schools. There will also be direct access to the retail hub at Parc Trostre.
Announcing the funding, Mr Waters, who is also the town’s MS, said: “We want to make walking and cycling easy, safe and attractive for people’s everyday local journeys, but people won’t leave their cars at home until they can see there is a viable alternative.
“I’m pleased that we’re committing £75 million to boost active travel in Wales.
“Locally, I’m delighted that we’ve been able to fund a new shared use bridge over the A484.
“The Trostre area is not easy to navigate for people walking or on bikes. The bridge will provide a safe, traffic-free route for people, giving them more choice in how they travel around this area.
“It’s a game-changer in that it is the final piece of the jigsaw in providing a traffic-free route that stretches all the way from Hendy, through Trostre and down to Delta Lakes.”
Chair of the Carmarthenshire Cycle Forum, Phil Snaith, has also welcomed the investment.
He said: “This really is fabulous news for Llanelli. This bridge will be at the centre of a whole network of high quality walking and cycling routes linking workplaces, shops, schools, hospital and leisure.
“With a handful of future links to follow, Llanelli will have a cycle network even the Dutch would be proud of. Our campaign, Give us 5miles, to get Llanelli a cycle network to be proud of, is almost there.”