Key mountain road to stay closed until November

Motorists have been warned that a key road will remain closed until early next month while ongoing mountainside repairs are completed.

The mountain road between Treherbert and Rhigos was closed on 22 July to allow work to commence on a major remediation scheme.

Work is being carried out to repair damage from a wildfire at the Treherbert end of the road which caused major damage across a significant area of the mountainside and its netting and fencing.

Emergency closure

The council has stressed that without this work it was possible that the rockface could deteriorate further, requiring an emergency closure over a much longer period.

It says the first two phases of the work are on target to be completed on time and the overall project remains on track to be completed by the contractual completion date.

A spokesperson for Rhondda Cynon Taf Council said: “From the outset of this closure the Council has been clear that the Rhigos Mountain Road remediation work is a complex project, dealing with huge infrastructure in a very challenging environment on the mountainside with specialist contractors engaged.

“It is therefore difficult to accurately predict exact completion timescales. At the start of the work, we had hoped it could be completed by the end of October, but also planned to go beyond this if required.

“Today’s update does not represent a lengthy delay to the scheme. Work is ahead of its contractual programme date, but the site activity will likely continue into early November. We appreciate that residents will be disappointed by this news. Our specialist contractors are very committed to the scheme and have worked hard to make the good progress seen to date.

Weather conditions

They continue: “The new estimated completion timescale is down to several contributing factors including weather conditions, very complex drilling conditions due to the nature of the geology, the quantity of loose material on the one phase of the rock-face, and limited site access.

“Maintaining the rockface’s stability during drilling work requires a steady approach, ensuring the risk of rockfall is safely controlled and that site staff are kept safe at all times.

“We’d like to thank local communities for their continued patience and cooperation, and we absolutely understand the closure’s disruption. However, we must get this project fully completed to ensure the mountain road is available and safe into the future, which is what we all want.

“We’ll communicate further details about the opening arrangements once they become clearer in the weeks ahead.”