Newtown bypass could be open by Christmas 2018 - ahead of schedule

The Newtown bypass could open by Christmas 2018, way ahead of the proposed completion date of May 2019, Councillor Joy Jones said today.

Councillor Jones was speaking after a site visit she attended with bosses from Alun Griffiths Ltd, which is constructing the new road.

South of Newtown a whole host of works are visible from the current A483, as work continues on the construction that will ease decades of traffic problems the Mid Wales town has suffered.

It was be a boost to scores of families from Shropshire and the wider West Midlands who use the road to get to the Welsh coast.

Councillor Jones was told of the speedy progress the contractors are making.

She said: "It was amazing to see just what is going on really.

"It is in a lot of my ward so I was invited up to see what was going on, and the work is incredible.

"The difference it is going to make to people in the area is massive.

"They had a target for early in May 2019, however they are more than on track and are hopeful that it will be completed in late 2018, which is great news.

"The quicker it is done for everyone the better, so they can see what it is and reap the full benefits of it."

The decision to build a bypass was made back in 2015, after decades of calls for something to be done about bottlenecking and traffic congestion in Montgomeryshire's largest town.

Following a lengthy public enquiry into what route to take, a decision was made for the bypass to stretch four miles from Llanidloes Road to the west of the town, to Pool Road in the east.

At the time work began the contract awarded to Alun Griffiths and was set to create about 90 jobs and apprenticeships.

But since the construction of the bypass began, there has been controversy.

The construction was set to damage the 500 year old Brimmon Oak Tree on the land owned by Mervyn Lloyd Jones.

A campaign began with a huge petition which ended in the bypass route being diverted and the tree being named UK tree of the year, and second in the European tree of the year.

At the other end of the bypass construction, homeowner Robert Roberts has been locked in battle with the Welsh Government, who he claims are under valuing his blighted home.

He has fought for three years to get what he says is the money he is owned for his home.

However earlier this month said he had got no where and diggers were moving closer to his house on Pool Road.

He said vibrations were causing cracks in his ceiling, but he is refusing the move and said he is ready for 'full on war' in the battle over his home.

Councillor Jones met with disgruntled landowners just weeks before visiting the construction site.

She says she fully understands the problems landowners are facing, despite the huge benefits the bypass is going to bring.

She added: "I am sure if anyone else was in the position of the landowners they would feel the same, and it is a shame they are being blighted by the bypass.

"However the benefits of the scheme are going to be huge for Newtown and people come into the area.

"It is going to make it a much more desirable place to come and I am delighted it is going to be coming in ahead of time."