Following completion of construction work, the path between Llanbadarn Fawr and The National Library of Wales will be open for use once again, just in time for Green Libraries Week (27 October – 02 November).
Barriers have been removed from this popular path to improve accessibility, and the path has been widened with a new smooth surface making it suitable for shared use by cyclists and pedestrians.
The new path has been surfaced with ‘flexipave’ which is a porous material helping surface water to soak away. This material is made from recycled vehicle tyres and this project has helped save over 2,100 tyres from going to waste or being burned.
This scheme has been delivered by Afan Construction a local contractor working on behalf of Ceredigion County Council. Officers from the Council’s Highways & Environmental Service have worked in partnership with the Estates Department at The National Library of Wales to develop and then deliver this environmentally friendly scheme.
Councillor Shelley Childs, Ceredigion County Council Cabinet Member for Highways and Environmental Services, said: “This active travel scheme is thanks to Ceredigion County Council officers securing grant funding from the Welsh Government’s Active Travel Fund, with support provided by Transport for Wales. Not only does this improve accessibility to the National Library of Wales and Aberystwyth University’s Penglais Campus, but it also forms part of wider cycle route connectivity proposals to help link the communities of Bow Street, Penrhyn-coch and Comins Coch with Aberystwyth town centre. Council officers continue to develop proposals for future phases in readiness for delivery to provide continual year on year improvements to the active travel network”.
Dr Rhodri Llwyd Morgan, Chief Executive of The National Library of Wales, added: “The new path looks fantastic, and we are pleased this has reopened for Green Libraries Week which is an annual showcase and celebration of what libraries have to offer, with a focus on the climate and sustainability. This path has provided a much-enhanced link direct to our main building, with cycle parking shelters available for staff and visitors. Our ongoing efforts towards de-carbonisation at the National Library of Wales exemplify our commitment to achieving a net-zero target by 2028. The installation of this active travel path will significantly contribute to these objectives by promoting lower-carbon modes of transport.”
