A bridge too far?
The emergency closure of the Menai suspension bridge to all forms of traffic following structural engineers’ discovery of “serious risks” that threaten its safety two weeks ago has thrown the Welsh Government’s moratorium on road building projects into sharp relief.
The Thomas Telford designed bridge, which will be 200 years old in 2026, still carries road traffic between the North Wales mainland and Ynys Môn (the Isle of Anglesey).
Its closure has caused significant impacts both upon local businesses, especially in Porthaethwy whose traders have likened the effect of the bridge closure to COVID, and also upon the island’s neighbouring A55 Britannia Bridge which is also a key conduit for Irish Sea freight traffic which has suffered significant levels of congestion as a result.
A preferred option for the new crossing east of the existing Britannia Bridge was identified four years ago at an estimated cost of £130M, yet the Welsh Government’s Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters, announced last week that estimated costs had the scheme had risen to approximately £400M.
In June 2021, the Welsh government paused all its new road building projects as part of Llwybr Newydd (New Path) transport strategy. It has since commissioned a review to calculate the carbon contribution of the road network, in order to set targets to help achieve its net-zero carbon emissions pledge.
The review panel submitted its final report last month, which includes recommendations for both the proposed third Menai bridge as well as other road schemes throughout Wales, with a response from Welsh Ministers expected next year.
The delay has been criticised in both Cardiff Bay and Westminster.
Speaking in the Senedd, Ynys Môn Plaid Cymru MS Rhun ap Iorwerth highlighted the importance of pushing ahead with the third crossing project, especially given the potential impact of inflation on construction costs saying:
“I and others have warned on this for a long time. We need a new crossing. The Welsh Government had pledged to deliver a new crossing, and it still hasn’t happened.
“There’s a price to pay for delay – a price in pounds, when inflation is so high, but also a community price too. It is resilience that we’re talking about here. There are two crossings, and one of them is a 200-year-old suspension bridge.
“We need a permanent solution, a resilient solution. It’s one thing to be an island, it’s another thing to be isolated, and that is the reality that’s been highlighted now. I look forward to hearing a renewed commitment to restart, as a matter of urgency, the work of developing a new crossing.”
Whilst in Westminster the MP for Aberconwy, Robin Millar, said the Menai Bridge closure made the case for a ‘UK-wide transport infrastructure network, whilst Ynys Mon MP Virginia Crosbie said that the closure of the bridge was “typical of the disdain in which Cardiff holds north Wales and the United Kingdom”.
Roads in Wales are devolved to the Welsh Government, however the maintenance of both the Menai and Britannia Bridges is the responsibility of a PFI company, UK Highways A55 Ltd.
Options for reopening the Menai Suspension Bridge as soon as possible are currently being reviewed and temporary hanger strengthening works may be required to ensure the safety and integrity of the bridge.
A programme of this scale could take 14 to 16 weeks, meaning it would not reopen to road traffic until the New Year.
Yet there is little prospect for short term relief with the Deputy Minister for Climate Change highlighting that even if a new road crossing was given the go-ahead, it would take around seven years to build. Under previous plans, a two-year build was anticipated.
Lee Waters added that there were also shorter-term contingency plans being drafted, and initial options in this plan include the options to:
increase park-and-ride facilities,
create potential stacking site options
review the rail use to and from the island.
Meanwhile pressure on Ynys Môn’s vital transport infrastructure is set to grow even further with the periodic complete closure of the remaining A55 Britannia Bridge to all road and rail traffic with the resumption of suspended maintenance works, including the installation of support beams to enhance the bridge’s resilience.
