Is this the beginning of the end? Today contractors have started laying tarmac at the new junction of Heol Isaf and Llantrisant Road.

As we reported recently, this is the first step in the process that will see the removal of the roundabout and the creation of a new junction controlled by traffic lights.

Hopefully, we will soon see the end of these roadworks. They will not be missed.

Cardiff Council is launching its 'Pink Sticker' campaign on 2 March, to encourage all of us to ensure that we place the correct items in our green bags and garden waste wheelie-bins.

The pink-sticker campaign will introduce a five-step enforcement procedure - with the fifth step (for repeat offending) leading to a £100 Fixed Penalty Notice.

You can read more about the pink-sticker scheme, below.

In the meantime, here is what you can put in your green bags (as set out on Cardiff Council's website):

This is what you can't put in your green bags:

This is what you can put in your green wheelie-bin:

This is what you can't put in your green wheelie-bin:

So, from 2 March, if you recycle the wrong stuff, it could cost you £100. 

We think recycling is an excellent idea - so let's work together as a community and get this right every time!

In the meantime, here's more information from Cardiff Council about their new pink-sticker scheme:

On 16 February we carried a story about flooding in parts of Radyr, which included the cricket club. Up to a five foot depth of water flooded onto the outfield - which caused damage to the playing facilities. The club lost some fences - and the net facility and its covers were damaged.  Very fortunately, the pavilion and its extension works suffered minimal loss.  

Since the flood, the cricket-club clean-up has been underway.

On Saturday, 21 February, over thirty members of the club, of all ages, helped to start clearing the huge amount of damage caused by Storm Dennis. The process will probably continue, every Saturday morning from 9.00am, until the season starts in the first week in May.

To this end, we received the following message from Christopher Hitchings, the club's chairman:

"Whether you are a member of the club, or just a Radyr or Morgantown resident, your presence on any Saturday, just for a few hours would be most welcome.”

So here's an opportunity for us to pull together as a community - and help to restore our magnificent cricket club after the recent flooding.

Where is the club?

It's just under the railway bridge by Radyr Station, then turn immediately right. The address is Riverside Ground, Station Road, Radyr, Cardiff CF15 8AA.

The club's 'phone number is 029 2084 3407

The pin on the map has been dropped at the end of the lane leading to the club.

We are about to enter another period of major roadworks at the junction of Heol Isaf and Llantrisant Road.
The following advice is based on information received from Plasdwr:

From w/c 2 March, Plasdwr's contractors (Alun Griffiths) will start the process that will lead to the removal of the current Heol Isaf roundabout and replacing it with a new, four-way signalised junction as part of the infrastructure improvements for Plasdŵr.

While this work is taking place, the two original lanes on Llantrisant Road (on the West side of the exisitng roundabout) will be closed and traffic will use the newly constructed lanes on the northern side of the carriageway, where a temporary mini roundabout will be created allowing traffic to travel as normal along Llantrisant Road.

Traffic travelling from Heol Isaf will be able to use the temporary roundabout to turn right onto Llantrisant Road, heading towards Llantrisant. To head left towards Cardiff, traffic from Heol Isaf will use the newly constructed slip road to bypass the roundabout altogether. There will be no left turn at the roundabout for traffic coming from Heol Isaf.

Other work will include resurfacing the bottom end of Heol Isaf, Llantrisant Road between the roundabout and the garage - and Lantrisant Road to the west of the roundabout. These sections will be done in turn - and each section will take about a week to resurface (so a total of three weeks). It is expected that this work will be undertaken before the contractors remove the existing roundabout.

The roundabout should be removed by the end of April. This will be followed by the installation of the new traffic light system, which will govern the flow of traffic through the new crossroads.

To ensure the safety of road users and contractors, traffic lights may be installed, at various locations, between 9.30 am and 3.30pm. We understand that we will not see any traffic lights in use 24/7 - and no traffic light will be installed until the new slip road is ready for use.

These arrangements are expected to be in place until the new junction is complete in summer 2020. 

Updates will be posted on Plasdwr's twitter feed: @plasdwr.

These timescales are correct at the time of writing.
​
In the meantime, the closure for 11 weeks of Heol Pant y Gored (in Creigiau) will inconvenience residents of Pentyrch and Creigiau - but it will also add to traffic using Heol Isaf, which will be used as part of the network of diversionary routes during the closure. You can read more about Pant y Gored here.

The changes to the Heol Isaf / Llantrisant Road junction will be followed by changes to the Parc Radur / Llantrisant Road junction. Again, the roundabout will be replaced by traffic lights - and it will look like this:

There will be another new junction, at Ty Gwyn. We understand that the new traffic lights will be used to control the flow of traffic into Cardiff during peak hours. So that, once a set volume of traffic has entered Cardiff, over a set period of time, the traffic lights will stay at red to give time for the roads beyond them to clear. In other words, Llantrisant Road will be used as a holding-pen, to control the flow of traffic through Radyr, Danescourt, Llandaf, Fairwater and beyond.

At the same time, a large park and ride facility is to be built near Junction 33 of the M4, with the aim of encouraging commuters out of their cars and onto buses. 

Out and about today?

​Some paths are flooded; the river is running strongly - but the road under the M4 is clear.

Pugh's was shut this morning. The Ty Nant is open.

The cricket club was badly affected, with up to five feet of water on the outfield and consequential damage to the club’s playing facilities. They lost fences, their net facility and covers were damaged, though thankfully the pavilion and the extension works suffered minimal loss. Luckily, the club’s machines were away being repaired. 

Take care!

Mark Drakeford, our Assembly Member (and Wales' First Minister) will attend our next Community Council meeting at 7.00m on Thursday, 20 February, at the Old Church Rooms.

This is a long-standing arrangement - with Mark attending one of our meetings on an annual basis (he also holds some of his surgeries at the OCR, from time to time).

We will be asking him about:

• the need for a School Safety Zone, for the main road near Radyr Comprehensive School;
• general road improvements and road safety work;
• reducing the flow of traffic into Cardiff through Radyr and Morganstown (and along Llantrisant Road);
  
• air pollution;
  
• the Drovers Way playground - and;
  
• facilities and services for our young people
  
• the condition of Bethel Chapel and Graveyard in Morganstown
  

​Let us know if there's anything else you would like us to raise with him (time permitting - and of interest to the general community).

​Members of the public can attend the meeting - but we ask that you contact our office beforehand to ensure that space is available.

Radyr and Morganstown Community Council, along with our excellent County Councillor, Rod McKerlich, have been working with Cardiff Council to develop a number of ideas with regard to road safety and highway improvements across our community. Indeed, Cllr McKerlich has been working hard on many of these ideas for many years with considerable success.

This work has resulted in the proposals to build three new zebra crossings along our main road; the closure of Golf Club Lane to traffic; proposals to install a section of pavement on Windsor Road - and, of course, Cardiff Council has recently consulted on its proposal to introduce a 20mph speed limit throughout Radyr and Morganstown (apart from Parc Radur, which will be included in a separate scheme, in due course).

We have also discussed, with Cardiff, possible improvements to the Station Road area. To this end, we have agreed to present Cardiff with ideas which could improve road safety at this location, whilst also improving Station Road's role as one of our community hubs.

In doing so, we are mindful of the fact that changes to the area would depend on Cardiff Council having funds available to undertake the work. Those funds could come from Plasdwr Section 106 money, or from other sources - but nothing can be guaranteed at this stage.

Even so, we see our role as presenting Cardiff Council with a vision for Station Road. It will be for Cardiff to decide whether or not to implement it.

We have today, therefore, invited residents and businesses located on, or near, Station Road, Windsor Crescent, King's Road and King's Avenue to respond to a number of ideas developed by the Community Council. These relate mainly to those roads  - as well as the approach to Radyr Station.

The proposals deal with parking, possible one-way systems, the use of Station Road by the community - and pedestrian safety near Radyr Station. 

Our initial survey has been sent only to residents and businesses directly affected by the proposal. Depending on the outcome of the initial survey (which closes at the end of February), we will then consider arranging a wider survey for Radyr and Morganstown residents.

​NB: If you live on any of the relevant streets, but haven't received a letter from us, please contact our office.

As always, we will keep you posted.

Update (3 March): the survey is now closed.

We just spotted this, on the corner of Station Road and Heol Isaf.

​It looks as if Cardiff Council is installing a new safety barrier. That should make this crossing a bit safer - which is to be welcomed.

Radyr and Morganstown Community Council is very pleased to welcome its latest councillor, Cllr Allan Cook.

Allan won the election held on Thursday, 6 February, to fill a vacancy in our Morganstown ward.

346 votes were cast, of which 250 were cast in Allan's favour. Second in the poll was Michelle Lenton-Johnson, who secured 96 votes. Full details about the election can be found here, including the fact that one ballot paper was rejected for being unmarked or wholly void for uncertainty.

​Our thanks must go to the Returning officer, Paul Orders, and to all at Cardiff Council who arranged the election.

Thank you, also, to all those in Morganstown who voted.

As stated in his election flyer, Allan has been a resident of the Morganstown ward for more than thirty years. He has been very active in Radyr and Morganstown over that period, having been Chair of the local History Society for 25 years and a long-standing member of the Radyr and Morganstown Association.

We look forward to welcoming Allan to the council - and we are sure that he will make an excellent contribution to our work.

It has come to our attention that one of the candidates seeking election to the Morganstown ward of Radyr and Morganstown community council has included the following statement in his election leaflet:

"I am also concerned about the community council's plan to acquire Morganstown Village Hall, to sell off the land for development and use the funds to build another facility. More houses, more pollution and more congestion on Heol Syr Lewis".

This statement is not correct.

Here's the background:

• The possibility of building a new community hall on the Mound Field (alongside the football pitch - and as a facility that the Radyr Rangers could also use) has been thought about for many years.

 

• One possible option would be for the trustees of Morganstown Village Hall to sell their site - and use the funds gained by doing so to build a larger, modern hall on the Mound Field. That, however, would be a matter for the trustees - not for the community council. And, in any case, there may be legal covenants limiting the use that can be made of the ground on which Morganstown Village Hall stands.

 

• The possibility of building a new hall was suggested as we consulted recently with regard to Cardiff Council's Infrastructure Ideas List. Knowing that the Radyr Rangers were discussing with Cardiff Council the possibility of building a new facility for the club on the site, we quickly discussed within the community council the possibility of building a new community hall on the Mound Field. Proposing the sale of Morganstown Village Hall was not considered to be an appropriate part of such a project. Instead, we looked at possible sources of grant funding, which could include the National Lottery (grants uo to £0.5million), Sports Wales (no specified grant limit), the Football Foundation (grants up to £0.5million) and the Public Works Loan Board. The council could also seek a mortgage - and even increase its precept to help cover the costs. At the end of the day, however, the council came to the view (in its meeting on 23 January 2020) that: access to the site may be too restricted for a community hall; the site was at too great a distance from the heart of the community; a new build such as this may impact the viability of existing halls - and the remoteness of the site could lead to problems with regard to vandalism and anti-social behaviour. As such (for the time being at least) the decision has been taken not to develop such a project. During our consideration of this issue, we discussed the possibility with the Radyr Rangers and offered to meet several times with the trustees of the Morganstown Village Hall.

In the meantime, we wish the Radyr Rangers well with their exciting project - and we wish the best for the trustees of Morganstown Village Hall with their continued care for their valuable and much-loved community facility.

However, were we right to bring an end to this project? Let us know what you think. Would you like to see a new community hall on the Mound Field, like the one shown below?