Plans submitted to repair road damaged by storm in 2021
Liam Randall, local democracy reporter
Formal plans to repair a road which has been closed for more than three years have finally been brought forward.
The B5605 in Newbridge, in Wrexham county borough, was closed in January 2021 after a large part of the road collapsed down an embankment during Storm Christoph.
There have since been lengthy delays to repair work, causing frustration for drivers who use the busy route between Cefn Mawr and Chirk, which also acts as a diversion from the A483 bypass.
Government funding
The Welsh Government awarded £2.8m in funding to Wrexham Council to cover the cost of the repairs in May 2022.
Contractors Jones Bros have now entered a planning application to allow reinstatement works to be carried out.
The proposals include the creation of a temporary access track between the top and bottom of the bank to allow excavators and other machinery to be brought onto the site.
Documents accompanying the plans state: “Jones Bros. have been procured by Wrexham County Borough Council to undertake work regarding remediating a landslip which occurred in Newbridge, Wrexham in early 2021.
“Following a scheme of site investigation, development of the design solution is currently underway.
“We anticipate the design to extend from the edge of the carriageway to the bank of the river over the length of the landslip area.
“To construct the scheme, we will require access to the toe of the slope for plant and material. We therefore propose an access ramp is constructed adjacent to the slip area.
“Two working platforms will also be constructed, one at the toe of the slip and another towards the top of the slip.”
Preparation work
Some preparation work has already taken place at the site, including the clearance of vegetation and the diversion of BT cables.
The plans show the access track will be located near to an existing path on the riverbank, with around 42 trees and a ten-metre section of wall needing to be removed to allow vehicles onto it.
Once constructed, work will then begin on the main repairs to the embankment, with documents showing reinforced concrete walls will be built at the top and bottom.
The riverbank itself will also be reinforced and a system put in place to prevent the erosion of underwater soil.
A decision will be made on the proposals by the council at a later date.
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A road which has been Wrexham’s responsibility since it was founded in 1996 slipped in Jan 2021. Instead of getting on with the technical work, dipping into reserves if necessary, they argued with WG until May 2022 when they were awarded monies. A further 2 years and we might just be about to commence work on a repair. Any surprise when potholes take months to have a temporary filling?