Call for 24-hour work to shorten Guilsfield road closure

With the main road between Guilsfield and Welshpool set to close for six weeks from this Monday, sending motorists on a nightmare diversion via Llanfair Caereinion, a county councillor has made one last plea to urge 24-hour work to reduce the strife.

Hafren Dyfrdwy needs the complete closure to replace 1.5km of piping, but Cllr Ian Harrison, who represents Guilsfield, has called for round-the-clock work to ease the burden on the thousands of motorists that regularly use the route.

In an email to the water firm seen by MyWelshpool, Cllr Harrison (pictured) said: “I don’t believe that your senior operations team understand the critical importance of the A490 between Guilsfield and Welshpool.

“The level of planned disruption for our paramedics, police, fire services, schooling, and bus transport services is simply beyond the pale. I have also received many complaints from local traders regarding the significant implications for them in the run up to Christmas.

“As a retired operations management professional, I have seen no evidence that Hafren Dyfrdwy has actually made any serious attempt to minimise the duration of the works or their extent. The duration can be collapsed by working teams 24/7 and I am struggling to understand why this is not planned.”

In reply to Cllr Harrison, the water firm said: “Regarding the duration of the teams working 24/7 is not always feasible due to safety regulations and environmental constraints. Our project team have explored options to accelerate the programme including extending working hours, this is currently being reviewed and if it is determined that the option is viable, our teams are fully prepared to implement this. We are fully committed to completing he works as quickly as possible.”

In a statement to MyWelshpool this morning, Hafren Dyfrdwy said: “We understand that works like these and road closures are an inconvenience, and we thank everyone for their patience while our works are ongoing. With every improvement scheme we carry out, we look at how we can complete work as quickly and efficiently as possible. This does depend on factors such as resource, the work that is taking place on site at the time and whether we are waiting on things such as sample results and equipment. We assess work schedules on a weekly basis and want to reassure the councillor and customers that this is something we will do on this scheme and will keep everyone informed of our progress as we continue.”

Meanwhile, we have also asked Hafren Dyfrdwy to clarify which diversion to take with the option of Arddleen no longer promoted due to a two-week night closure in November on the road from the Arddleen-Welshpool. We will share the information as soon as received.