Anger as wind turbine convoys through Shropshire and Mid Wales to start
Huge lorries carrying wind turbine parts will begin their convoys through Shropshire and Mid Wales next week, amid fears it will harm the region's tourist trade.
There are fears the convoys, which will move along the A483 each day between Oswestry and Welshpool from Monday, will damage tourism as the school summer holidays begin.
The convoys will begin each day in Wrexham and travel along the A483 past Chirk, Oswestry, Llanymynech, Welshpool and Llanfair Caereinion, before finishing at the Tirgwynt wind farm near Cefn Coch.
The convoy of two abnormal loads, with a full police escort, will travel between 11am and 2.30pm.
Welshpool mayor Councillor Steve Kaye said he feared the convoys would hurt the town's economy through the summer.
He said that the Government should be "looking at the bigger picture," "scrap wind farms" and concentrate on tidal energy instead.
"We have no option than to have these lorries coming through Welshpool," he said.
"We haven't got a say about what goes through our town. It makes me so angry. I am the mayor of the town and my town will be affected by this," he said.
Current plans are for one delivery per day up to six days a week, which would take approximately two months, until mid-September.
Developer Awel Newydd said it aims to shorten this period by increasing both the frequency to two deliveries a day and size of the deliveries to a maximum of three abnormal load vehicles. But this is subject to police deeming it safe to do so.
Pete Thomas, construction manager for the developer, said: "Months of preparations have gone into this, working with our experienced hauliers and the local police, and we feel confident that the deliveries will cause minimal disruption."
