Dinas Powys villagers hopeful of bypass to ease traffic

The A4055 through Dinas Powys is a busy route between Cardiff and Barry

Campaigners for a bypass around a south Wales village are hopeful the long-awaited road could soon be built.

Vale of Glamorgan Council said public consultation on the project for Dinas Powys could be launched by the summer.

A preferred new route to ease traffic on the A4055 between Cardiff and Barry has to be identified before a business case goes to the Welsh Government.

Councillor Gwyn John said people were "frustrated" at the delay, claiming local roads were "chock-a-block".

'Great progress'

Emma Reed, the council's head of neighbourhood services and transport, told councillors a 12-week consultation could be launched before the summer break in August.

"We have made great progress on this project over the last couple of years," she said.

Rod Harrod, chairman of the Dinas Powys Bypass Steering Group, said the plans were "more advanced now than at any time in the last 30 or even 90 years".

He said improvements to the Merrie Harrier junction would benefit staff, patients, and visitors at Llandough Hospital, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Councillor Andrew Robertson, who represents the village, said: "If the traffic situation in Dinas Powys is resolved it would benefit every community across the south Wales/Vale of Glamorgan corridor."

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Gwyn John, a councillor for Llantwit Major, said the bypass was a "must".

"With all the development we have got across the Vale of Glamorgan it's chock-a-block," he said.

He urged councillors: "Don't give up - get stuck in. It's going to be a battle."

Consultants for the local authority prefer a route starting from the Merrie Harrier roundabout and connecting to the A4055 south of Dinas Powys before continuing onto the Biglis roundabout.

Alternatively, the new road could extend to the roundabout between Sully Moors Road and Hayes Road. Improvements to public transport and cycling and walking routes are also being considered.