Sunday road closures for Castle Inn Bridge investigatory work

RCT Council requires two separate Sunday road closures on either side of Castle Inn Footbridge in Treforest, to help investigate future options for the damaged structure – starting at River Street this weekend.

The Listed footbridge has remained closed due to severe structural damage sustained during Storm Dennis in February 2020 – which brought record rainfall and river flows to Rhondda Cynon Taf andthe most severe flooding since the 1970s. The Council is committed to securing funding, anddesigning and carrying out repairs following the huge infrastructure damage sustained.

The upcoming work taking place at River Street onMay 16, and Cardiff Road on May 23, willinvestigate the position of underground servicesnear Castle Inn Footbridge. The Council has appointed Hammond (ECS) Ltd as the contractor responsible for carrying out this work across the two Sunday shifts.

A473 River Street – 6am on Sunday, May 16, to 6am on Monday, May 17

The first closure takes place near to where Castle Inn Footbridge meets River Street, with work taking place across a 15-metre section of road directly north of the bridge. As River Street is a one-way road, its wider length must be closed between Fothergill Street and Castle Street to facilitate the work.

An alternative route is via Fothergill Street, Broadway, Glyntaff Interchange, A470 southbound, Upper Boat Interchange, A473 Gwaelod-y-garth Road, A473 Tonteg Road, A473 TontegRoundabout, B4595 Tonteg Road, B4595 Siop-y-coed, B4595 Llantwit Road, and B4595 Park Street.

During the closure, the 100 Edwards Coaches service from Pontypridd will be unable to serve stops on Broadway, Pontypridd, and the Otley Arms – and will therefore divert via Wood Road and King Street, resuming its normal route at Llantwit Road.Journeys returning to Pontypridd are unaffected.

A4054 Cardiff Road – 6am on Sunday, May 23, to 6am on Monday, May 24

The second closure will take place on the opposite side of the river, where Castle Inn Footbridge meets Cardiff Road. The work will take place over a 30msection of the road (from 15 to 16 Cardiff Road, north westwards).

An alternative route for motorists from the southern side of the closure is via Cardifff Road, Upper Boat Roundabout, A470 northbound and GlyntaffInterchange. For motorists travelling in the opposite direction, this route is largely the same – taking the A470 southbound instead of northbound.

The Council is in the process of finalising a free shuttle bus service – to travel through Rhydyfelin, Hawthorn and Upper Boat – during the Cardiff Road closure. The arrangements will be communicated to residents in due course.

For both the River Street and Cardiff Road closures, access will be maintained for pedestrians but not for emergency service vehicles.

Local residents will shortly receive a letter explaining these arrangements in further detail. Noise mitigation measures will be undertaken by the contractor – however, it is inevitable that noise levels will be noticeable. While each road closure starts at 6am, excavation work will not start before 8am.

The Council would like to thank local residents and road users in advance for their cooperation while these disruptive works take place. They have been scheduled over two Sundays to minimise disruption as much as possible.