Madam,

Driving south into Aberystwyth on Friday at 3.45pm, I thought I’d avoid the traffic and turn left at the top of Penglais Hill, a quick right into Cefn Llan. Big, big mistake.

It took me 45 minutes to reach the top of Heol-y-bont and out the south side of Aberystwyth, just because of the traffic. Google says it is 1.2 miles and take four minutes to drive there.

In those 45 minutes it gave me time to think and to ask questions.

It was only when I reached the circle at the top of Heol-y-bont that I finally understood why Aberystwyth is such a pain to drive through, let alone stop and shop.

The reason was simple. At roundabouts, traffic gives way to the right. So those exiting Aberystwyth from Penparcau Road are given the priority over those trying to exit on the left from Heol-y-bont.

This right of way then backs up down the hill to traffic exiting Aberystwyth from the right from Boulevard de Saint Brieuc, which then backs up the traffic exiting Aberystwyth from Ffordd Sulien, which then backs up to traffic from the A44 trying to get to the north and south of Aberystwyth and north from Rhiw Briallu, with drivers occasionally letting the traffic from Heol-y-Llan into the traffic ‘flow’.

What a pain. 3.45pm wasn’t even rush hour.

I cannot imagine the tonnes of pollution emitted by the exhausts of thousands of cars and lorries passing through the bottle neck of Aberystwyth.

And then there is the time and money wasted, multiplied by thousands of hours of frustrated commuter and business drivers, just in one day!

And that is just in the afternoon. Try getting into Aberystwyth to work or for an appointment at the dentist at 9am.

Our planners in their ivory towers built on the flood plain of Aberystwyth, Aberaeron and Cardiff, responsible for trunk, domestic roads, the expansion of thousands of homes and multinationals in Aberystwyth, have got a lot to answer for.

One solution that occurs to me is to have computer-controlled traffic lights at each roundabout, that monitors the traffic flow and that only works when traffic is heavy.

Another is a bypass from the A44 to the north and south, which will cost millions and probably wouldn’t get priority from Cardiff for years, if ever.

Another is to avoid Aberystwyth altogether. Time that the left was given a look in, at roundabouts, I think. What do your readers think?

Yours etc,

Alan Raddon, Aberarth.

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