Pont Bodfel: New bridge opened after storm damage

The bridge was officially opened at a ceremony on Wednesday

A new bridge has opened, four years after a storm damaged the old crossing.

Pont Bodfel's foundations, which links Pwllheli and Penllyn in Gwynedd, were rendered unusable for traffic in 2019.

A new crossing has opened for vehicles after a £1.2m investment and was named Bodefail by a competition winner.

It stands next to the original bridge, which was built in 1805, and the old one will now only be used by walkers and cyclists.

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Ysgol Pentreuchaf pupil Magi, who thought up the name, said: "I was thinking about the villages on both sides of the bridge, so bod for Boduan and efail for Efailnewydd.

"It's a really exciting day- I can't really believe it."

Bodefail bridge connects Pwllheli with key areas of Penllyn

Poet Meirion MacIntyre Huws, one of the competition judges, said: "A lot of names came up, one of the best ones we thought was pont o'r diwedd, which translates to 'a bridge at last!'

"But we settled on Bodefail, a name that is a bridge between the two neighbouring villages, Boduan and Efailnewydd."

Politicians and residents attended a small ceremony on Wednesday morning, to cut the ribbon and announce its opening.

Gwnynedd councillor Anwen Davies said: "It's going to make a big difference, the old bridge is narrow and made for horse and carriage but this is now a gateway to the rest of Llyn."

Traffic lights remain in place on the bridge as the final work to lay the road comes to an end. This is due to be finished in time for the national Eisteddfod in nearby Boduan in August.