A pedestrian crossing is being built across one of the roads around Cwmbran town centre to replace a subway which is being filled in. Torfaen Council will use £171,000 of Welsh Government Local Transport Grant to fill in the subway linking Northville to town and make the road safe for pedestrians to cross.
WATCH a video inside the subway
A council report said Cwmbran Shopping and Gwent Police have highlighted the underpass as a hotspot of drugs and vandalism.
A council report says: “The underpass is subject to constant abuse: drugs, vandalism, hooliganism, litter, vomit, fires and intimidation to users is a continual problem. This puts users in a vulnerable position and is a drain on TCBC resources especially at a time of major budget restraint. It has been identified by Cwmbran Shopping and Gwent Police has a long running problem.
“£171,000 of Local Transport Funds has been secured for the survey, design, construction and project management. The funding will be used to close and fill in the existing underpass. A new pedestrian crossing and footway links will be constructed in close proximity to the existing underpass, allowing pedestrians to continue to cross at the existing desire line. During the proposed works, a safe crossing facility will be maintained.”
A traffic assessment was carried out to see the impact of the new crossing on vehicles in the area. The report says: “The report summary confirms that the proposal is considered to have a relatively insignificant increase in journey times with the longest increase being 20 seconds in journey time on the Maendy Way to Edlogan Way route, based on worst case scenario with high demand at the crossing during the busiest times.”
Click here to read the full report on Torfaen Council’s website. The work will be done in March 2020.
Photos of the subway
