New bridge agony for motorists

18/10/2011 @ 01:42

In the week that saw the limited reopening of the Aberbechan Bridge to Newtown, which has eased the town’s traffic nightmares, there was bad news for many motorists going the other way across the border.

Next week, the bridge that crosses the River Severn at Llandrinio is set to close, leaving motorists heading to Shrewsbury from Guilsfield, Arddleen, Four Crosses and Llandrinio with huge diversions via Welshpool.

And Powys County Council admits that while work is only scheduled for a week, it could take longer.

A Highways spokesperson said: “Maintenance work will be carried out on the bridge from October 22 to the 28^th or until the work has been completed.”

Aberbechan Bridge closed at Christmas after cracks appeared and it cut off a popular back road into Newtown for Welshpool motorists. It has forced all traffic to the main road into the town, causing congestion headaches compounded by the installation of new traffic lights by Tesco.