Snowdonia: Llanberis parking solution criticised
- Published
Electric Mountain visitor centre closed in 2018
Parking problems caused by visitors to Snowdonia cannot be fixed by creating a new car park in one village, residents have said.
The Covid pandemic and travel restrictions led to an influx of people to Llanberis over the last two summers.
Overflowing car parks caused anger and concern among some residents.
But a plan to demolish a disused building to create a further 110 parking spaces near Llyn Padarn has been criticised.
Despite this, the company behind the move - Engie UK - said it would continue to "discuss all options with the local parties and community groups" regarding plans for the site.
The old visitor centre at Electric Mountain, which ran tours of Dinorwig power station, has been closed for more than three years.
Engie UK is the parent company of First Hydro, which runs the site and said work on the power station meant no visits would be possible for "several years".
As a result, they have said the visitor centre has no use for them "in the foreseeable future and... is likely to deteriorate over time".
First Hydro submitted plans to Gwynedd council to turn the site into a car park to "help to address the chronic shortage of car parking in Llanberis, which is particularly acute during the summer period, to the benefit of the local tourism economy and standards of amenity within the village".
It said it intended to "make the proposed car park available for local community events, on an occasional basis, throughout the year".
But residents have raised concerns that a site originally earmarked for the community could be put to better use.
"Every time I've asked the question of the council they say that there isn't a parking problem here, only on event days," said Councillor Kevin Morris Jones.
Outgoing councillor Kevin Morris Jones wants more to be done on the site
"So if they turn this site into a car park, it will probably be empty most of the time.
One alternative proposal was to build a pump track - a multi-use riding track for bikes, skateboards, scooters and even disability users.
"For young kids in Llanberis, there's nothing for them. There's a lot of interest in a pump track, that's the future," he added.
"You could fill the existing car park with visitors for that, and it keeps them busy even in the winter.
"I hope they rethink their plans and listen to what young people want to see."
The future of the site has been a point of contention locally
Other residents said they want to see something which could be used by the community at large.
"The building was originally supposed to be for the community, as a leisure centre and swimming pool, hopefully it could be something like that again in the future," said resident Glyn Hughes.
Engie UK said it recognised the role Electric Mountain Visitor Centre played n community life and there was "a strong local desire to see the site developed in such a way that provides benefits to the local area".
"We have been working hand-in-hand with community representatives and local partner organisations to establish a suitable future for the site," it said.
"Together we have explored a range of options and the latest proposals were presented to members of the community with an explanation of First Hydro's proposals for the Visitor Centre site.
"This information would allow informed comments to be made on the planning application to Gwynedd Council."
- Published26 April 2021
- Published20 July 2020
