Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Work has started on the second phase of a walking and cycling route which will improve links between communities and to key leisure and employment sites in Llanelli. Phase one of the scheme – which saw a shared use path created along the A4138 between Dafen and Llangennech – has already been completed. Now work is underway on the second phase along the B4303 Llethri Road. The scheme will encourage sustainable travel and improve road safety in the area, linking communities for easy access to schools and shops, and employment sites including those at Llanelli Gate Business Park and the Dafen Industrial Estate, as well as Gestamp and Calsonic Kansei, who are large employers in the town. It also forms part of the longer term plan to create a wider walking and cycling network in and around Llanelli, achieving the council’s requirements under the Active Travel Act and supporting Carmarthenshire’s aspiration to become a premier walking and cycling destination in Wales. Construction work sta...

Plans to develop Carmarthenshire as the cycling capital of Wales have shifted a gear following Executive Board approval to create a new £500,000 closed road cycling circuit at Pembrey Country Park. Carmarthenshire County Council has allocated capital programme funding for the purpose-built track, with the backing of Welsh Cycling and Sport Wales. It will be good news for cyclists near and far, and will further boost Pembrey Country Park with an additional income of over £25,000 a year expected via entrance fees, caravan and camping stays and secondary spend. Welsh Government has agreed to sign over a parcel of Joint Venture land on industrial space near the entrance of Pembrey Country Park meaning work will begin shortly. When complete it will be used to stage competitive cycle sports, recreational events, and a traffic free environment for coaching and training. The facility will be of British cycling standard, and will be the best in Wales – if not the UK – attracting local, region...

Work has started on a section of the multi-million-pound and picturesque Tywi Valley Path. The first phase of works have taken place between Fronun and Bwlch Bach, near the concrete works in Abergwili, and will form part of the planned 16-mile route linking Carmarthen and Llandeilo through the scenic Tywi Valley countryside. The works included drainage and widening of the existing carriageway for approximately 1km, with some road markings and signage still to be carried out, and were paid for thanks to a Local Transport Fund grant from Welsh Government. The remainder of the path will be all off the highway and will follow an almost adjacent route to that of the River Tywi, linking in with major tourist attractions and generating between £860,000 and £2million in the local economy every year. It will also give people a sustainable and healthy travel option, linking with villages between the two main towns. Executive Board Member for the Environment Cllr Hazel Evans said: “I am delight...

Ambitious plans to provide a cycle path between Carmarthen and Llandeilo have stepped up a gear thanks to a £581k grant. The council has received a Local Transport Fund grant of £581,600 from Welsh Government towards walking and cycling links in Carmarthenshire which includes the Towy Valley Cycleway project. The grant will go towards the early design stages of the scheme, which will help to make Carmarthenshire the cycling capital of Wales. The project – which will cost in the region of £5 to £7million - is predicted to generate between £860,000 and £2million in the local economy every year. It is also expected to create and support between 17 and 41 full-time jobs a year. The route will follow the old railway line where possible and will link in with major tourist attractions. It will also give people a sustainable and healthy travel option, linking with villages between the two main towns. Executive Board Member for Transport Cllr Hazel Evans said: "I am delighted that we hav...

Carmarthenshire County Council’s Sport and Leisure team are attempting to gain a record for the number of children riding balance and toddler bikes at any one time, and they need your help to do this! They are looking for around 100 participants between the ages of 2 and 7 to enter the Little Bikers Challenge. It will be held on Sunday, March 20 at Pembrey Country Park. The council has teamed up with organiser of the UK’s only cycle beach race, Battle on the Beach, which takes place on the same day, to make this possible. The fun race starts at 10am, so if your child is up for a challenge then please register their place here . All participants will receive a medal at the end of the race. Following the event, there will be a selection of fun activities as well as the main Battle on the Beach race starting at 12noon, with over 750 riders taking part. It is likely that this unique event will attract media interest so your child may be filmed. Both balance, toddle bikes and helmets w...

Pembrey Country Park will play host to a cross duathlon next month. The unique off road event will be held on Sunday, February 28 and is the only one of its type overseen by Welsh Triathlon. The courses will suit all abilities with a fun, fast mountain bike course and an undulating run including a short section on the beach (tide and weather). It’s open to over 14s with a choice of full route – 10km off road run, 22km off road bike, 5km off road run - or sprint/youth distances - 5km off road run, 11km off road bike, 2.5km off road run. Cyclocross bikes will be allowed, but the course will be designed primarily for mountain bikes. The superb fast and flowing single track event starts at 10am and Entries are available online through British Triathlon . Usual car parking charges apply at £2. The council’s executive board member for leisure, Cllr Meryl Gravell said: “The terrain at the park is perfect and continues to show its diversity for hosting all kinds of events throughout the year...

A leading Carmarthenshire councillor has visited an old coaching inn now catering for the cycling community. Cllr Meryl Gravell visited the Black Lion inn in Abergorlech to see landscaping work carried out in the grounds and improved facilities for cyclists. The Black Lion is an old coaching inn servicing the local community and tourist trade. The inn is in the centre of the popular Brechfa mountain bike trail and is visited by cyclists all year round. Landlord George Rashbrook successfully applied to Carmarthenshire County Council for a  Strengthening the Tourism Appeal of Rural Carmarthenshire (STARC) and was awarded more than £16,500. The project was for the enhancement of the beer garden, bike facilities and covered barbecue area. The work includes creating additional seating space and landscaping in the beer garden by creating two new levels from the currently unusable section of the garden, enhancing the aspect of the beer garden and maximise the view of the Roman stone br...

Cefn Sidan is hosting a ground breaking cycling event that will be a team relay race against the sea. The event promoted by Howies and A Cycling is a brand new coastal cycling event in Wales and will be extremely challenging for riders because of the vast expanses of beach and fast rushing tide. Matthew Page of A Cycling, who triumphantly staged Battle of the Beach at Pembrey last year, said the event would be a six-hour team relay, racing from high to low tide (3pm to 9pm) on a spectacular 7km course through Pembrey Country Park on Saturday October 4. He said: “It is open to pairs and teams.The race will take a snaking route through woodland with masses of fast, flowing single track with a short section on the beach. “We’ve designed it for off-roaders like cyclo-cross, mountain bike or fat bikes. The coastal location means the terrain drains very quickly, making it perfect regardless of the weather.” Surly Bikes will be on site all day providing demo rides on the full range of bi...

RDP Sir Gâr’s Zero Carbon Future project has been busy helping rural Carmarthenshire groups to reduce their communities’ carbon footprints by looking at greener ways of living. Llandeilo Town Council used a grant from ZCF to install a bicycle rack in the town centre car park. Commuters and tourists converge at this point at Llandeilo. The provision of a cycle rack will encourage people to cycle to and from Llandeilo reducing, car journeys, congestion, costs and improving health and wellbeing for users. ZCF Officer Paul Thomas said: “This an example of ways in which communities can become more environmentally friendly and encouraging integrated transport provision. Having a safe and secure place to park your bicycle helps to encourage greater cycle use in Llandeilo." Zero Carbon Future, part of the RDP Sir Gâr Innovative Hubs project, is funded through the Rural Development Plan (RDP) for Wales 2007-2013 which is funded by the Welsh Government and the European Agricultural Fund...

Llanelli residents are getting in to the spin of things to keep fit and healthy. High intensity exercise craze spinning is proving so popular in Llanelli Leisure Centre that it’s had to introduce more classes since the arrival of 15 new bicycles last month. The 45-minute sessions involve hopping on a stationary bike and peddling as hard as you can while adding and subtracting resistance. The funky music classes improve cardio endurance and muscle tone, as well as helping to reduce stress levels. Instructor Ruth Armstrong-Bull said: “You’ll get an amazing workout and many people just go for the atmosphere and to make friends. The class can be as intense as you want it and you can adjust your bikes to a level you feel comfortable with.” The latest craze is known for it strong sense of camaraderie between riders as they sweat in dimly lit studios that pump heart-pounding music. The classes are held on a Monday at 7am and 7pm, Wednesday at 7am, Thursday at 7am and Friday at 9.30am and 5....

People sitting their driving test could also have to sit a cycling proficiency test as a way of improving people’s mobility and making cycling a safer way of getting around. That’s one of the options put forward by Friends of the Earth Cymru in their response to proposed new Welsh legislation, answering the call by the Minister for Transport for radical ways to change the culture of transport in Wales[1]. Other suggestions include a default 20mph speed limit in built-up areas and giving pedestrians right of way at most road junctions. Gareth Clubb, Director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said: “The cost of petrol is increasing week by week with no end in sight. And greenhouse gas emissions from transport in Wales are just as high now as they were more than two decades ago. “We have to totally change the way people think about moving around Wales and beyond by putting people before cars in our towns and cities. We need to make walking and cycling the natural choice for local t...

There will be a public exhibition in Pembrey on Friday (May 25th) explaining £558,000 worth of safe walking and cycling routes around the village. The massive scale of the 13 elements involved will be graphically illustrated at the Pembrey Community Centre on Mountain Road between 1.30 and 7pm. The scheme will unveil plans to improve access to the Pembrey Primary School, library, St Illtyd’s Parish Church, Pembrey Country Park, Ashburnham Golf Course, the Millennium Coastal Path, Mountain Road and the Pembrey Canal cycleway and footpath. The path is currently being upgraded by the Council’s transport and engineering division as part of the Regional Transport Plan Walking and Cycling linkages scheme. Works have already started and will be delivered by April next year. County head of engineering and transport Stephen Pilliner said: “We have been successful in bidding for funding under the Welsh Government Safe Routes in Communities initiative “We were successful in drawing down £558,068...

Cross: Junior Worrall Wins Welsh League Round 5 The floodlit Merlin's Knight evening cyclo-cross promoted by Towy Riders and held in Carmarthen Park was a first for Wales, and was hailed a great success by all riders.