Brexit and funding issues contributed to delays in the project
Work is finally coming to an end on a UK road after more than two decades. Back in 2002, a complex road upgrade project began on the A465 Heads of the Valleys road linking Swansea to Monmouthshire in South Wales.
The aim was to turn the 28-mile stretch of road into a full dual carriageway and help bring prosperity to one of the most deprived areas in the UK.
Parts of the road were already two lanes each way, but other parts of the A465 suffered from severe congestion and frequent serious road crashes caused by poor visibility.
Funding issues caused by Brexit and challenges posed by the tricky terrain contributed to delays in the project, the BBC reports.
Now, after 23 years, the roadworks will be going. But only after huge delays, massive overspends, and hundreds of carriageway closures.
One local told BBC News it was “like the road from hell,” saying that “not even Chris Rea would dare come here.”
The work included more than 40 bridges and 12 new junctions being built and ended up costing £2bn.
Some 285,000 trees have also been planted to try and offset the significant environmental impact of the work.
Welsh ministers have said the road upgrade will help former mining communities “left behind” in the 1980s and early 1990s.
Wales’ transport minister Ken Skates told the BBC: “In 50 years’ time, experts will look back and say the single biggest thing the Welsh government has done to raise the prospects of Heads of the Valleys communities is building this road.”
The improvements to the road mean drivers can mostly do 70mph without having to stop for roundabouts.
It’s hoped that the road will offer an alternative route between the Midlands and south-west Wales, easing pressure on the M4 at Newport.
Skates said the upgrades were “about generating jobs, prosperity, opportunities and better connecting and benefiting communities across the region.”
Local opinion on the works seems to be split. One resident from Merthyr Tydfil said it has been a “nightmare” but would be “worth it”, whilst her sister said it was not needed and had “cost too much money.”
A trader in the town centre told the BBC she had lost 50 per cent of trade because of the roadworks. However, she said the road would “make a big difference when its finished.”
You can read more about the project here, and the full BBC report here.
