Wales weather: A55 flooding action call by Plaid Cymru

Cars were left stranded on the A55 at Llandygai

Urgent action is needed to prevent further flooding on the A55 in north Wales, Plaid Cymru has said.

Police spoke of Boxing Day "chaos" with motorists having to be rescued and cars abandoned after heavy rain.

Rhun ap Iorwerth claimed north west Wales had been "effectively cut off" and called for 2017 drainage work at Aber/Tai Meibion to be brought forward.

The Welsh government said flood and coastal risk management was a key priority.

"Yet again, the A55 dual carriageway between Bangor and Llanfairfechan has been closed, causing severe travel problems," Plaid's transport spokesman said.

"While Plaid Cymru welcomes the Labour Welsh government's commitment to address this recurring problem, we cannot wait until 2017."

Four flood warnings remain in place across north and west Wales, along with dozens of flood alerts.

Former Welsh Secretary David Jones was also critical after the flooding compounded frustration for motorists who had faced delays due to roadworks in recent months.

The Conservative MP for Clwyd West complained via Twitter, saying: "Penmaenbach tunnel misery followed by yet more floods at Aber. Does WAG (Welsh assembly government) give a monkey's about North Wales motorists?"

Police said some homes had been flooded in Talybont, near Bangor

Plaid Cymru AM Alun Ffred Jones was concerned about flooding in the village of Talybont, near Bangor, claiming the Welsh government had refused to fund a Gwynedd council plan which could have prevented it.

"This is the second occasion recently where Talybont villagers have had to endure serious flooding and the second time that the A55 has been closed," he said.

"The last time this happened, the transport minister at the time - Carl Sargeant - pledged that this would never happen again.

"The scheme would cost about £1.5m, which is trivial compared with the £38m that has already been spent on the M4 near Newport.

"I demand a fair deal for all parts of Wales where we need to protect our people and their homes."

A Welsh government spokesperson said: "We have committed almost £300m over the life of this government including European funding to managing flood risk and we are committing an additional £150m to coastal risk from 2018.

"This has included significant investment in north Wales including in flood risk management schemes at Rhyl, Colwyn Bay, Corwen and Beaumaris.

"Following these latest incidents of flooding we will work with local authorities to see what additional action can be taken to speed up work to protect homes and motorists while aiming to minimise the impact on road users."