End in sight for North Wales landslip road after years-long closure for repairs

The upper section of the bank has been pinned and reinforced beneath where the road used to be
-Credit:Cllr Terry Evans


Repairs to a hillside road wrecked by a landslide are on course to be completed in May. The road in Wrexham county has been closed for four years, bringing misery to local residents and businesses.

A section of the B5605 Newbridge road slipped into the River Dee during Storm Christoph on January 25, 2021. Critics have noted sourly it’s taken longer to reopen the B road than it took to build the nearby A483 River Dee viaduct, the highest road bridge built over a British river when it opened in 1990.

Despite £2.8m of Welsh Government funding being secured in April 2022, work didn’t start at the site until summer 2024. Since then, major shotcrete and underpinning work has been done to stabilise the upper section of the slope beneath the old road.

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The next stage of the project depends on contractors Jones Bros securing a permit from Natural Resources Wales. This will enable the site team to build a pile rig platform by the river Dee so that the lower slope can be reinforced.

“This is a critical stage of the entire scheme,” said Chirk South councillor Terry Evans, lead member for environmental services at Wrexham Council. “The permit is expected this week, enabling heavy plant machinery to get down to the river beneath the road.”

A temporary access track to the river has been built already. Contractors have also reburied a 11kv power cable found at shallow depth. As a “proactive measure”, they have also replaced bridge joints on Newbridge’s own bridge over the River Dee.

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For the next stage, a piled wall will be installed under the road following some minor tree felling. The final step will be to place a ready-built parapet wall along the road - this is being manufactured off site. “The scheme is going to schedule and we’re hoping this continues before the planned May completion date,” said Cllr Evans. Sign up now for the latest news on the North Wales Live Whatsapp community

The reinforced upper section beneath the old road. The foreground shows the start of an access track down to the river where a piling rig is to be built
The reinforced upper section beneath the old road. The foreground shows the start of an access track down to the river where a piling rig is to be built -Credit:Cllr Terry Evans
A pile rig platform is to be assembled by the river so that the rest of the slope can be reinforced
A pile rig platform is to be assembled by the river so that the rest of the slope can be reinforced -Credit:Cllr Terry Evans

Before it can reopen, with a lower 40mph speed limit, eroded road markings will need replacing and overgrown roadside vegetation cleared. Long-suffering residents can’t wait. “About...time,” said one man on social media. “It’s taken way too long.”

Newbridge was bypassed 35 years ago when a three-mile A483 section was constructed between 1987-1990, the Dee bridge being its main feature. The B5605 continued to be used by local traffic and was a useful alternative whenever the A483 was closed by crashes, maintenance or bad weather.

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During its closure, A483 traffic has been diverted instead via Llangollen, a lengthy detour into a neighbouring county that often leaves the town gridlocked. “It’s a long way round and Llangollen has taken a hammering in the last few years,” said Cllr Evans.

“The road’s closure has caused a lot of local frustration and led to the closure of several businesses. Hopefully we’re now on course for its reopening.” Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox

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