Member of the Senedd for Ynys Môn is frustrated at the timeframe of a new bout of works on the Menia Suspensio Bridge.

The work, announced today, includes replacing hangers and completely repainting the bridge.

It will mean traffic management and operating a single lane for more than 18 months, including during school holidays.

Rhun ap Iorwerth MS, Leader of Plaid Cymru and Member of the Senedd for Ynys Môn, said: “I am incredibly disappointed and frustrated that the estimated timeframe for completing the permanent works on Pont y Borth is scheduled to take so long.

"Even with one lane remaining open during this time, I’ve no doubt that the impact on the local community and bridge users will be significant. Of course, this is vital work, and it was bound to take a significant length of time, but we need to bring this timescale down.

“We’ve already seen how devastating the impact was on local businesses in Menai Bridge in my constituency when the bridge was closed suddenly last October, and my priority now will be to lobby Government to bring down the timescales significantly, and to ensure that all possible mitigating measures are put in place to help traffic flow. That should include considering if further business support is required for this period from September.

“We know too well what the knock-on effects are of having disruption on our bridges. There is a clear lack of resilience in our Menai crossing infrastructure and our recent experiences have proven just how vulnerable our infrastructure is. That’s why I’m clear that we need a more robust crossing, and the solution is to dual the Britannia crossing, or in other words to erect a third crossing.

"In the interim, I’ll continue to lobby the Minister to introduce a peak flow traffic system on the Britannia, potentially using a so-called zipper system that I’ve previously outlined.”

Work will begin on Monday, September 4, to make sure it is permanently restored in time for its 200th anniversary.