‘Open mind’ on a third Menai crossing says transport minister

The Welsh Government minister leading on transport says he has an “open mind” about a third Menai crossing but that it was not an option they could even afford to pursue right now. Welsh Government had previously backed a third crossing over the Menai Strait with the previous first minster Carwyn Jones naming a preferred route in 2018.

Progress continued to be made until all road projects were placed on hold when the Welsh Government announced the roads review into every highways scheme in Wales in 2021. When the report was published the plan for an additional crossing was put on ice – although the Government has said it has not completely written off a third bridge.

Ministers asked the North Wales Transport Commission – led by Lord Terry Burns – to consider the route as part of a year long review of road, rail, bus and active travel across the whole of North Wales. The commission has published an interim report, with ideas to improve the route but these did not include a third crossing.^[1]

Lee Waters, Deputy Minister for Climate Change, who has responsibility for transport, was asked whether a third crossing was still on the table. He said all options would be considered but he added that the Government did not currently have the £400m needed to pay for a crossing.

The minister said: “We specifically asked the Transport Commission to look at that (the Menai crossing), options have been floated. We are looking seriously at a third lane ‘zipper’ option ^[3] that was raised by Rhun ap Iorwerth. We will consider all the options.

“The truth is in the short term we don’t have the money to build a new crossing, regardless of whether we think it’s a good idea or not. We’ve had 12 years of austerity and our capital budget is down 8% this year in real terms, so there just isn’t enough money to go around.

“We need to come up with some short solutions to help people getting on and off the island and then look at the longer term solution. Let’s see what Burns say about that, if they think a bridge is part of that I’ve got an open mind.”

References

^{^} with ideas to improve the route but these did not include a third crossing. (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Llanbedr will get congestion busting road but not ‘all-singing, all-dancing’ bypass (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} at a third lane ‘zipper’ option (www.dailypost.co.uk)