Retaining wall replacement at Gwawr Street in Aberaman
Photographs were taken in 2018 before RCTC did necessary safety work after part of the retaining wall collapsed into the Nant Gwawr.
The Council will begin a complex scheme to replace a retaining wall at Gwawr Street in Aberaman – requiring traffic management at certain points throughout the work in order to make progress.
The wall at Gwawr Street collapsed during summer 2019, and the Council initially engaged a specialist contractor to carry out urgent remedial work to ensure the structure was safe. Its replacement is a complicated scheme given the location of the wall adjacent to the Nant Gwawr, the presence of a water main nearby and the location of the highway as the only access to the street for vehicles.
The Council has now announced that work will begin on Monday, August 17, and has appointed Centregreat Ltd as the contractor to deliver the scheme. Work will take approximately 16 weeks, subject to weather and circumstances in relation to Coronavirus. All work will adhere to social distancing guidance.
The scheme will include site clearance, watercourse realignment, construction of a reinforced concrete wall, carriageway widening and footway provision.
Intermittent traffic management will be required at certain points of the scheme, as a necessary measure in order to make progress. This will include temporary two-way traffic lights – however, no road closures are anticipated. Further information will be sent to local residents via letter shortly.
Councillor Andrew Morgan, Leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council and Cabinet Member with responsibility for Highways and Transportation, said: “This retaining wall replacement in Aberaman is a complex scheme due to a number of factors, including the presence of the stream and the fact that the nearby highway presents the only access for vehicles to residential properties. The Council has worked very closely with specialist contractors, and Welsh Water given location of a water main nearby, to bring forward this works scheme.
“The Council is responsible for repairing and maintaining 1,500 walls, culverts and bridges that support our road network, and the £25.02m Highways Capital Programme for 2020/21 contains a £6m investment for such work. Important projects are currently ongoing at Castell Ifor Bridge in Hopkinstown and St Albans Bridge in Blaenrhondda, along with river wall schemes at Station Street in Treherbert, Victoria Bridge in Pontypridd and at Ynysybwl Road. Around 12 Storm Dennis-related repairs are also either underway or completed.
“Local residents will soon receive a letter explaining the full details of the work at Gwawr Street, and the anticipated traffic management arrangements. Our contractor is hoping to be able to complete this scheme without a road closure and I’d like to thank residents in advance for their patience and cooperation."
