Cabinet has agreed the details of an additional £2.1m investment in addition to this year’s highways capital programme – including 33 new resurfacing schemes and further important funding for flood alleviation work.
In August 2022, Cabinet agreed to a wider £2.725m investment in Council priority areas, which included £1.1m for highways and roads and £1m for flood alleviation and drainage. At their meeting on Monday, October 17, Members agreed to a supplementary programme using this extra funding, to be carried out in the remainder of the current financial year (ending March 31, 2023).
£1.1m for Highways and Roads
- £670,000 funding for 19 carriageway resurfacing schemes.
- £100,000 for three unadopted roads (Glyncornel Close in Llwynypia, Cadwaladr Street in Mountain Ash, and Gelliwion Road in Pontypridd).
- £215,000 allocation for 11 footway renewals.
- £15,000 is set aside for access improvements.
- £100,000 for drainage improvements.
Full details of these additional work locations are available in the report to Monday’s Cabinet meeting, available on the Council’s website.
£1m for Flood Alleviation
- £600,000 to progress business cases, continue schemes, and provide match funding for external grant bids. This level of match funding could result in grants of more than £4m being received from Welsh Government this year (2022/23).
- £300,000 for critical drainage projects on the transportation network, that are neither funded nor eligible for an external grant.
- £100,000 for project design and preparation works that may qualify for an external grant or direct Council investment in 2023/24.
Councillor Andrew Morgan OBE, Leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council and Cabinet Member for Infrastructure and Investment, said: “We are already investing more than £26m in the Council’s Capital Programme for Highways, Transportation and Strategic Projects this year. This includes a £4.6m programme for road resurfacing and footway renewals which has made good progress throughout recent months.
“The £1.1m funding agreed by Cabinet on Monday is in addition to the capital programme, and will allow us to extend it by 33 new schemes to improve local roads and footways in 2022/23.
“I’m pleased that three of these schemes are for unadopted roads, continuing our programme to improve unmaintained private roads and adopt them for future Council maintenance. The additional three new schemes in Llwynypia, Mountain Ash and Pontypridd take the total number to 23, adding to the seven initial pilot schemes announced last year, and 13 locations that were added in the current capital programme in March.
“The £600,000 extra funding for flood alleviation to progress business cases and pursue external funding is important. It could generate £4m funding from existing opportunities, as key Welsh Government programmes provide an 85% contribution for local schemes. The funding will enable us to continue our vital work to alleviate flood risk at targeted locations, to protect our residents, businesses and infrastructure."
Posted on 20/10/2022