Llanbedr bypass: Axed Gwynedd road plan to cost £1.7m

The amount spent on the project is set to reach £1.67m, but no road will be built

A scrapped bypass road project cost taxpayers nearly £1.7m, new figures have revealed.

Last week, the Welsh government axed plans for the £14m bypass in Llanbedr, Gwynedd.

Having already been granted planning permission last year, after 60 years of lobbying, the withdrawal sparked accusations of "betrayal".

The Welsh government pulled the plug following advice from a committee of transport and climate experts.

Calls for the one-mile (1.5km) Llanbedr access road date back decades and it was hoped the road would cut traffic through the Snowdonia village by 90%, while improving access to the nearby aerospace centre, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

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The decision is part of an ongoing review of Welsh government road projects and came after a panel concluded the road was likely to increase carbon emissions.

Responding to a written question by Member of the Senedd Natasha Asghar, deputy climate change minister Lee Waters confirmed the spend on the Gwynedd Council-led project was set to reach £1.67m.

He added: "To date, £1.472m has been provided to Gwynedd Council for this scheme.

"We await a further claim from the council for costs incurred up to the decision not to proceed with the scheme, which we estimate to be around £200,000."

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Ms Asghar, a Conservative, said: "Motorists were hoping this road would be the answer to their prayers and end traffic jams and long commutes in the area, but sadly Labour ministers have decided to let them carry on suffering.

"I find it astounding and appalling that this huge amount of taxpayer cash has been poured down the drain and there is absolutely nothing to show for it in north Wales."

Mr Waters said he had asked officials to work with the council to commission Transport for Wales to develop an alternative package for consideration.

Gwynedd Council has been asked to comment.