Motorists who travel in from North Wales to Chester will be pleased to hear that a consultation for a £200m major improvement plan to tackle traffic jams on the A55/A494 in Flintshire will take place.

The 12-week consultation on proposals to combat congestion and improve safety on one of North Wales’ busiest sections of road – the Deeside Corridor – will launch on March 13, the Welsh Government has announced today.

Two routes have been suggested which traffic bosses hope will bring the road 'up to modern standards'.

The stretch is notorious for bottlenecks and crashes, with past incidents including overturned caravans and a lorry which spilt its load of firelighters.

The road nowhere

One option is a package of improvements on the existing A55/A494, while the second would see a series of improvements over the Flintshire Bridge along the A548, which has in the past been branded 'the road nowhere', and a new link to the A55 at Northop.

Several years ago the Welsh Government planned to widen the A494 from Drome Corner to Ewloe up Aston Hill to create a seven-lane 'super-highway' with hard shoulders, which sparked huge protests and resulted in it being rejected following a public inquiry in 2007.

Economy Secretary Ken Skates said: “The issues on this stretch of road are well documented and I’m delighted we are taking decisive action to tackle the problem.

“The road is consistently carrying more traffic than it was designed to do and this is causing regular congestions issues. There is clear need for the road to be upgraded and brought up to modern standards.”

He added: “Both options in this consultation will deliver a safer, more sustainable, better connected road, with improved capacity, reliability and journey times. And we must achieve all of this whilst keeping the impact on local residents, the landscape, air quality, biodiversity and pollution, to a minimum.

“This is a significant local issue and I’d invite anyone with a view to contribute to this consultation once it launches in March so that all evidence and opinion can be considered.

“I will then be making a decision to ensure a programme of improvement that delivers the very best solution for North Wales.”

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