Cynon Valley Commuters have to wait years for major highway infrastructure
The controversial Mountain Ash Cross Valley Link Roads
Followers of AberdareOnline will have known how much we have lobbied years for Rhondda Cynon Taf Council to construct the Mountain Ash Southern Cross Valley Link Road and the Northern Cross Valley Link Road.
Ground testing starts for Southern Cross Valley Link the council is to receive grant funding of £0.3m from Welsh Government to support the Council’s investment.
The labour party has been talking about
Mountain Ash Cross Valley Link for over 30 years and indeed has promoted this propaganda at every election but the road in not been constructed.
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/53853/page/16268/data.pdf
Our new Cynon Valley Labour Assembly member Vikki Howells is attempting to promote the Welsh Labour government to fund this project in her first question in the Assembly https://shar.es/1dlRmp in response the first minister said “he would hope RCT makes a formal submission in the next few years”
So the prospect is the Mountain Ash Cross Valley Link is a good few years off and full funding has not been obtained again from the Welsh Government for this project. This is not new as the preceding AM Christine Chapman went through the same question 7 December 2004
“Mountain Ash Southern Cross Valley Link
Following the publication of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Transport Strategy, Christine Chapman AM has questioned the Transport Minister on the Mountain Ash Mountain Ash Southern Cross Valley Link”
So what is the cost of Mountain Ash Cross Valley Link Road in a Rhondda Cynon Taf county borough council cabinet meeting 26 March 2007 Mountain Ash Southern Cross Valley Link estimated cost 5 million. 9 years on and you can triple the cost, not forgetting RCTC don’t have the funding for the new road.
So what about the Northern Cross Valley Link Road at Mountain Ash A cross-valley link in 2008 the Northern Cross Valley Link was one of the Major Road Schemes which links the east to the west bank, north of the town bridge. We note RCTC are not talking of incorporating this project we ask the question why.
RCTC talks of approving future developments just take the Phurnacite plant as one example a proposed housing development with an additional 500 homes and a primary school, that potential for a further 800 vehicles traveling south on the A4059 towards Mountain Ash. We need the new highway infrastructure now not when vehicles are queuing from Mountain Ash to the Asda Roundabout in Cwmbach.
So Cynon Valley commuters have to put up with traffic congestions for the foreseeable future “in response the first minister said” “he would hope RCT makes a formal submission in the next few years” and is that just for the Mountain Ash Cross Valley Link Road, what about the Northern Cross Valley Link and the extension of the proposed Aberdare Bypass to the Heads of the Valleys.
