Social Audit... Research Findings - Transport Infrastructure

back to research findings

2.7    Transport Infrastructure   

Congestion   back   return to top of page

Speeding cars and car parking were ranked third and fourth respectively in residents identification of  big environmental problems in their area. However, the community visioning results suggest that if a category for traffic congestion had been included in this question it could well have been ranked first. Traffic congestion appears to be a major concern for respondents particularly on roads from and to the “Stag Square” in Treorchy town centre during the evening rush hour:

“Traffic coming up the valley causing bottle-neck from Maindy to Parc & Dare between 4 and 6pm daily”

“traffic in Treorchy is terrible between 4 and 6 p.m.”

“traffic is getting worse”

In turn this is reported to have created problems in the side streets which run parallel to the main road with drivers trying to escape the congestion by using these as rat runs:  

“they turn in by the Red Cow and turn out by the Prince……it’s a rat run”

“we need traffic calming measures to stop speeding ….Dumfries Street is a rat run”  

Respondents suggested a range of different ways which might help alleviate these problems. These included incremental adjustments to traffic management on the existing road infrastructure:  

“traffic congestion at Stag Square -turn off lights as a trial …place roundabout instead of lights……when the lights are not working the traffic just flows through”

“more traffic control by post office ….no right turn away from the side roads”  

However, many respondents also appeared to take the view that more radical measures be taken in the form of constructing a new bypass:  

 “build a bypass which takes the Cwmparc traffic out of Treorchy”

“take part of the gardens and low cost [now Pioneer] away and widen the road out …..”

“Bypass by EMI [on the Treorchy Industrial Estate]upwards would take the traffic up to Cwmparc - the existing road needs to be widened”

“a bypass is needed for the Rhondda”  

Significantly, many respondents regarded the construction of a new by-pass as something which was more than a quality of life issue, but as being crucial to revitalising the local economy:  

“big juggernauts on this road is pathetic. They can’t build factories without good roads”

“the new by-pass for starters….communications are key ….. that would create possibilities up here”  

Speeding   back   return to top of page

Over half (58%) of respondents to the questionnaire survey felt that speeding cars were a big problem in their area. Qualitative data relating to speeding cars suggests that this is principally a problem on the main arterial routes through Treorchy, Ynyswen and Cwmparc, although it has also been suggested that speeding is a problem on those roads that are used as ‘rat runs’. Public concern about speeding appeared greatest around areas such as schools, parks, play grounds and residential streets where children were playing or travelling as pedestrians. In these locations there was popular support for the installation of traffic calming measures such as speed cameras, speed bumps and chicanes:

“there is a problem with speeding traffic …put in sleeping policemen”

“a speed camera on the main road is badly needed”

“a pedestrian crossing in the middle of Park Road would be much safer for the young people of Cwmparc”

“we need calming measures …..sleeping policemen on either side of the school”  

Parking   back   return to top of page

Problems with car parking appear to fall into two main types. The problem associated with parking near shops and local services and the problems which this generates for local businesses and their customers:  

“parking is problematic …..it stops shops opening up in the area”

“there is a problem of space for a car park….There is lots of talk but no action”

“car parking around the library ……. I would like a car park on the River Road”

“We need the opportunity to buy land for parking ……any shop owner who tries to open in Treorchy … the first thing they throw at you is parking”

“ a car park behind the community centre [in Cwmparc] would be a good idea as cars are always double parked on Park Road”

“Parking on school hill is causing danger to children as there is no guidance for children crossing from school ….. also Pengelli crossing”  

The second major area of complaint with car parking is in residential side streets where there are often not enough spaces to park. This is especially the case since many households have more than one car (the 2001 census found that 20.3% of households in Treorchy had two or more cars or vans). Moreover there were also complaints about cars parked near junctions with other roads causing obstructions to larger vehicles such as buses (see below) or delivery vehicles:  

“we need double yellow lines for forty five feet around junctions….the lack of them impedes access”  

 Additionally some respondents also commented that parking - especially near junctions - was a road safety issue as it obscured drivers vision, whilst some of the older respondents noted how in their youth when car ownership was almost unknown the street had been somewhere where they could play! The problems with parking are in this way linked to the problems of a lack of suitable play areas for children.  

Conclusion 11: 

There are clearly serious problems with the road traffic infrastructure in the area. Congestion, especially on the main arterial routes, has a negative impact on residents quality of life, detracts from the attractiveness of Treorchy town centre as a shopping area, increases residents travel to work times for those working outside of the area and is also likely to discourage inward investment. These problems are compounded by parking difficulties in residential streets and around local amenities, whilst there are also road safety fears created by speeding traffic.

Recommendation 9:

The problems with the road infrastructure are again structural and therefore beyond the control of the regeneration group. However, the group should lend its support to other groups campaigning for a bypass. In the near term it may be possible to develop partnership arrangements with the local police force and highways department with a view to implementing traffic calming and control measures. The precise implementation of these measures should be conducted through a process of ongoing consultation with the community.

Public transport   back   return to top of page

Given that according to the 2001 census approximately one third (34%) of respondents did not have access to private/public transport provision is obviously of critical importance. This issue generated mixed and at times contradictory results. Thus, although an overall majority (63%) of respondents to the questionnaire survey claimed to be satisfied with the provision of public transport in the area approximately half (49%) of all respondents wanted to see improvements made to local bus services. 

Equally as can be seen from table 12, views about the adequacy of public transport were subject to significant variation across the three areas.

Respondents from Cwmparc expressed far lower levels of satisfaction with the provision of public transport with only 56% describing it as excellent, good or satisfactory, and were also more likely to want improvements to the local bus service (61% compared to 52% of the total sample). 

This is likely to have occurred as result of Cwmparc’s relative geographical isolation and lack of local services generating a greater reliance on public transport than is the case in Treorchy and Ynyswen  Perhaps surprisingly there was no significant variation in views about the adequacy of public transport between those who had access to private transport and those that did not.    

Table 12: Proportion of respondents describing public transport provision as excellent, good or acceptable.  

Qualitative aspects of the research recorded a number of key areas of criticism with the local bus service. At times it was claimed that the buses could be unreliable: 

“the buses are useless. My father waited for over an hour the other day and a bus didn’t turn up so he went home.”

“the bus service doesn’t turn up some days”

Some respondents attributed this to unrealistic timetabling:

“the bus service doesn’t turn up some days ..there are problems with drivers and the timetable …. It is supposed to run from Cwmparc at 8.15 to Ponty to Rhydyfelen and get back to the Parc and Dare at 9.30 a.m. ……..it often doesn’t make it”  

(As is noted in an earlier section of this report during peak traffic times this journey can take upwards of 40 minutes one way by car). Further problems with timetabling reportedly arose through a lack of co-ordination for journeys which required the use of more than one bus:  

“To go swimming they have to catch two buses and the cost is a lot ….. especially if you have two or three children. The times of the buses don’t correspond”

“Transport is an issue …there are no facilities to get from valley to valley…bus services do not tie in with them.”  

Other respondents were critical about what they perceived as holes in the timetable at crucial times. This was particularly the case with the afternoon timetable in Cwmparc:  

“during the afternoons from 2.30 to 4.30 there is no bus …its inconvenient for shoppers”  

Finally a number of respondents reported that there was something of a lottery in whether the bus would actually be able to get round all of its route as a result of the access difficulties created through parking in residential streets and, during the winter, a combination of bad weather and difficult roads. This can obviously create major problems for people with mobility difficulties and some reported that rather than “risk it” they would stay at home if the weather was bad. However, it was also noted that whether the bus would be able to successfully navigate its route when conditions were difficult was largely dependent on the attitude, willingness and skill of the driver. In this context it was suggested that the service to residents could be improved through the use of  dedicated drivers for particular routes.  

Conclusion 12: 

There is a clear view that local public transport services can be improved. The main areas of concern relate to a perceived unreliability of the bus service and a perceived lack of co-ordination in timetabling for journeys requiring two or more buses. Satisfaction levels with the local bus service are at their lowest in Cwmparc.  

Clearly, this discussion has major importance for the current community transport feasibility study currently being conducted. Community transport schemes have the capacity to address many of the local and short route transport issues raised in the community audit. They can used to provide both routine local services and to take specific groups such as pensioners or youth to facilities outside the immediate area. They have an added advantage of building the local volunteer base and can provide training and employment opportunities for local people.  

Recommendation 10:

That the Regeneration group supports the creation of a community transport scheme and contributes to a positive outcome for the current feasibility study.  

 return to top of page

* * * * *

please send your news items to - news@Treorchy.net

Treorchy.net aims to provide you with an accurate news section - if you find a factual error, please let us know!