A SIX-FIGURE grant to help protect cyclists and pedestrians in Porthmadog has been awarded.

Last week it was announced that the Welsh Government had made nearly £200,000 available to Gwynedd Council to improve the cycle/footpath network in Porthmadog, especially around the Britannia Bridge.

Explaining how the money would be spent, a Gwynedd Council spokesperson said: “We have successfully secured £157,000 from the Welsh Government’s Local Transport Fund that will enable the completion of a popular footpath in the Porthmadog area.

“This work will include the completion of a key link of the popular path between the Cob and the path near the former tax office building in the town.

“In addition, the council has also secured £40,000 from the Welsh Government’s Road Safety Capital Grant to develop various possible design options that would ensure that the Britannia Bridge in Porthmadog is safe and accessible for cyclists."

Local councillor Jason Humphreys, who has tirelessly campaigned for safer access for many years, was delighted.

He said: “The approval of funding for these two separate, yet related, projects is excellent news and they are major steps forward towards the fulfilment of what I, with the support of the town council, have been campaigning for the best past of a decade.

“The re-routing of the cycling path from Britannia Terrace through the back of Ty Moelwyn gained planning permission last January and I expect to see it concluded in the autumn."

Read the full story in this week’s north editions of the Cambrian NEws