Exploring Wales – interesting facts about Welsh roads

While the journey may seem smooth, building and maintaining these roads is anything but straightforward. Wales is home to some unique challenges when it comes to road construction, from unpredictable weather to ancient landscapes.

In this blog, we’ll uncover some fascinating facts you may not know roads in Wales. Buckle up as we dig into the remarkable world of Welsh roadbuilding!

• Responsibility for road maintenance in Wales is devolved to the Welsh Government.
• The landscapes of Wales have often posed challenges to road construction, but this has sometimes brought about leaps in construction techniques. Thomas Telford took on the construction of what is now largely the A5 in North Wales. It was massively superior to other roads of the time with his self-imposed challenge to construct the road with gradients no worse than 1:30 which was no mean feat for the topography. While his involvement is probably most remembered for the bridges along the way, it was often his construction techniques that were most ground-breaking. Of course, most of the original road is now buried under modern materials!
• Roads are made using asphalt which is a mixture of aggregates, binders (bitumen) and fillers. Asphalt is a preferred material for road construction due to its numerous benefits. Its flexibility allows it to withstand heavy traffic loads and varying weather conditions without cracking or breaking, ensuring long-lasting durability. Its smooth surface provides excellent skid resistance and reduces road noise, contributing to safer driving conditions and a more pleasant environment.
• 7% of roads in Wales are reported as being in poor condition.
• The steepest road in Wales is found in Snowdonia and is called Ffordd Pen Llech. It hits a gradient of 35%+ in places and in some sections cars aren’t even allowed! It’s widely thought to be the steepest public, paved road in the UK.
• As part of Wales’ bid to become a zero waste nation by 2050, the Welsh Government has trialled using recycled nappies to resurface a stretch of road on the A487 between Cardigan and Aberystwyth. GD Harries were involved in the project and produced and laid the asphalt, working closely with Nappicycle.

How many miles of roads are there in Wales?

There are 21,100 miles of road in Wales. This means if we stretched them all out, Welsh roads could go up and down the border with England 66 times! The highest amount of dual carriageway road length is around Swansea. Gwynedd is the area with the most single carriageway in the country, and indeed the most road length overall.

The A470 is the longest road in Wales at 185 miles (300 km) in length. It runs from Cardiff in the south to Llandudno in the north.

Where can I source asphalt in South Wales?

At GD Harries we supply asphalt from our four plants in South Wales throughout the country. Our asphalt production plants are based at Alltgoch, Blaencilgoed, Bolton Hill and Llandarcy. All of our asphalt materials are available for either collection or delivery in our dedicated insulated vehicles.

Our surfacing division undertakes major road resurfacing projects throughout Wales every year and we have been awarded contracts under the South Wales Trunk Road Agent framework (SWTRA) as well as the Civil and Engineering and Surfacing framework for North and Mid Wales Trunk Road Agent (NMWTRA).

Find out more about South Wales asphalt and get in touch.