Town centre planters to be removed from next Wednesday

 

* The planters along Castle Street.

Workmen are to start removing the social distancing planters from Llangollen town centre starting next Wednesday, says Denbighshire County Council.

In a statement issued this morning (Wednesday) a spokesperson for the council said: “We have booked a contractor in from September 22 to remove the temporary scheme from Castle Street and Abbey Road in order to facilitate the Llangollen 2020 scheme. 

"The work is expected to take a maximum of five days.”

The planters replaced bollards originally put in place by the county council last November.

The temporary measures were part of Local Sustainable Transport scheme to ensure adequate pedestrian space for Covid-19 social distancing.

However, the measures proved unpopular with some local residents and traders and a petition calling for their removal, started by Stuart Davies who has since become a town councillor, gathered hundreds of signatures.

Ruthin rejected similar measures following resistance from the local Member Area Group and similar plans for Denbigh were shelved after public opposition to the idea.

The Llangollen Advocate Facebook group, which has campaigned vigorously against the measures, published details of a series of tripping accidents to pedestrians blamed on the original bollards.

However, the presence of the measures were always strongly defended by the area's two county councillors, Graham Timms and Melvyn Mile, who said last November: "We are both fully behind the Llangollen Covid-19 scheme. Its introduction was to enable people to stay safe when they visit the town, providing space for social distancing and safe queueing outside shops."  

 

Roadworks alert for Horseshoe Pass View

Latest local roadworks alert from one.network is:

Horseshoe Pass View

17 September — 21 September

 

Delays unlikely - Traffic control (give & take)

 

Works description: Boundary box Install 25mm Job in Footway (6mm Bitmac (Tarmac) )...

 

Works location: 11 HORSESHOE PASS VIEW...

 

Public facing description: one.network has automatically assigned a category of Unclassified works to this Works based on the information available. Please note: Works Descriptions are not published by Hafren Dyfrdwy.

 

Responsibility for works: Hafren Dyfrdwy

 

Current status: Advanced planning

 

Works reference: ZU0028102/000060409011

 

Search is launched for heroes of tourism industry

* Jim Jones, the chief executive of North Wales Tourism.

A search has been launched to find the heroes of the tourism and hospitality industry in North Wales after the “absolute nightmare” of the past 18 months.

Jim Jones, the chief executive of North Wales Tourism, hopes the glittering Oscars-style awards ceremony will herald a reboot for the sector that’s been battered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Nominations are now being sought for 15 categories at the Go North Wales Awards that will be held at Venue Cymru in Llandudno on Thursday, November 25. The closing date for nominations is Sunday, October 10.

The event will be hosted by the acclaimed BBC News television journalist, Sian Lloyd, who hails originally from Wrexham.

The private sector body which has around 2,000 members was due to celebrate its 30^th anniversary at last year’s cancelled awards.

But just like the Olympics and the Euros the event is going ahead a year late and guests will be wearing 1990s garb to mark the occasion.

Until the pandemic struck, the tourism industry in North Wales was breaking all kinds of records.

In 2019 the overall income generated  increased to an all-time high of £3.6 billion and the number of visitors rocketed to nearly 37 million. 

It was responsible for one in every seven jobs in the region, employing 42,000 people.

Then the industry collapsed like a house of cards when the first lockdown was imposed in March last year.

But the staycation boom this summer has shown that North Wales is still a hugely popular destination for holidaymakers.

Jim Jones said: “The last 18 months have been an absolute nightmare.  It’s probably been the most stressful and most challenging time everybody, not just for the tourism industry. 

“Of all the economic sectors in the North Wales economy, tourism and hospitality have borne the brunt of the pandemic and the restrictions and everything was against us.

He added: “One reason why we were really keen to put on these awards is to celebrate our 30^th anniversary. 

“The original plan was to have a big celebration last year but we’re going to follow in the footsteps of the Olympics and the Euros and do it a year later than we had originally planned.

“The awards will be about recognising the heroes of the tourism and hospitality industry and the incredible resilience they have shown and are continuing to show during the most challenging time that our sector has ever faced.

“We’re not out of the woods yet because it’s going to take a good few years before we ever get anywhere close to full recovery as we were back in 2019.

“Just surviving this incredibly difficult time has been a massive achievement for a lot of people in the industry but there is now a real opportunity to start the process of recovery. 

“We have 15 different categories with some designed to stand out in order to recognise some of the sacrifice and the innovation that have come out of the pandemic as well.

“A case in point is where the awards will be held. Venue Cymru was transformed into a temporary hospital and became a vaccination centre right on the frontline in the battle against Covid.

“In essence we want to champion all that is best in the regional tourism and hospitality sector and the achievements of our fantastic members over the past three decades.

“Even during the pandemic there have been some new and exciting developments including the release of new whiskies by the Aber Falls distillery, the new Penderyn whisky distillery and visitor centre in Llandudno and the new Hilton hotel at Adventure Parc Snowdonia.

“What we also want to flag up and celebrate is the huge contribution tourism makes to the regional economy and how it can play a central role in leading North Wales to economic recovery.

“In the long term we have a lot to be optimistic about and the awarding of World Heritage Status to the Slate Landscape of North West Wales has provided a brilliant boost at just the right time.”

North Wales Tourism will also be using the occasion to raise money for their nominated charity, St David’s Hospice in Llandudno.

To make a nomination go to: https://gonorthwalestourismawards.website/submit-application/

The categories up for grabs are:

1. Go Attraction of the Year
2. Outstanding Contribution to Tourism Award
3. Go Tourism & Hospitality Hero
4. Go Responsible and Sustainable Green Award
5. Go Hotel of the Year
6. Go 30 years of the Tourism Industry
7. Go Best B&B/Inn
8. Go Holiday Park of the Year Award
9. Go Pet Friendly Award
10. Go Self Catering of the year
11. Go Activity of the Year
12. Go Caravan, Camping or Glamping
13. Go Taste of North Wales Award
14. Go Resilience and Innovation Award

Go Business Events and Incentive Travel Award

Police carrying out speed checks on main roads in town

Police are currently carrying out speed checks on roads in Llangollen.

The warning comes in a message from PCSO Geraint Jones on the North Wales force's community alert website.

He says: "Due to a number of complaints in relation to speeding in Llangollen, local PCSOs have been monitoring the Abbey Road and Berwyn Street areas.

"The Neighbourhood Policy Team will continue to monitor these locations on a regular basis."

1950s coach has £5k facelift by railway volunteers

* The new coach is seen on arrival at Carrog on Friday.

Carriage restoration enthusiasts are celebrating the completion of their project to return a 1950s compartment coach to working condition at the Llangollen Railway.

The coach, once used on commuter trains in and out of London Kings Cross, is described as a Brake Second Suburban unit. 

It has taken three years of volunteer effort to restore it at the railway’s Carriage & Wagon Works. 

The coach features six separate compartments for passengers with a guard’s compartment. 

It will join an existing rake of four previously-restored suburban coaches. Together they will offer a unique train operating formation on Llangollen Railway.

Coach No.E43359 was taken for a trial run with the 11am departure from Llangollen hauled by the Class 26 diesel locomotive No.5310, recreating a scene from the late 1950s when such trains ran on the Eastern Region lines in north London.

During the restoration the opportunity was taken to provide additional capacity for the less able passengers to travel.

The luggage space within the guard’s compartment was partitioned off and fitted with seats and space to accommodate wheel chair users and their carers. An added feature is the installation of two windows in the end wall which offer an observation coach view of the line when at the rear of the train.

* Project team members Peter Jump and Paul Bailey with LRT deputy chair Phil Coles sample the new compartment for mobility impaired passengers

Project leader Peter Jump said: “When the coach was acquired in dilapidated condition from another railway its restoration was considered a major job.

“So it proved to be and three years later the Llangollen Railway Suburban Group members are more than pleased with the outcome of their endeavours.

"It shows what dedicated volunteers can achieve working one-day-week in the open air with a minimum of facilities. 

"This style of coach has 18 doors, half of which had to be replaced and the rest repaired. The bench seating in each compartment has been reupholstered with a Scot Rail machete material and each compartment has four framed reproduction prints of British Railways countrywide scenes, each sponsored by supporters. 

"The project has cost about £5,000, plus innumerable volunteer hours of work.”

Llangollen Railway Trust deputy chairman Phil Coles acknowledged the successful completion of the project by the group of volunteers.

He said: “On behalf of the Trust, I congratulate them for their dedication to see the work completed, especially during the period of the pandemic.

“The Suburban coaches will provide the regular set for weekend trains during the autumn period running through to Halloween. Either a steam or diesel locomotive will haul the train and offer an example of what it was like to travel into the City of London in pre-electrification days.”

To be formed as a five-coach rake, the Suburban set offers a modern-day seating capacity of around 300. 

This is rather less than the number of commuters British Railways wanted to cram in 60 years ago when travellers were a lot thinner and a compartment was expected to take 12 adults in cosy comfort.

Today the availability of all the compartments makes the coaches ideal for maintaining social distancing, as well as offering an unusual rail experience at Llangollen Railway.

* The Class 26 diesel and train at Carrog.

Kamiq is a plain Jane but with tardis-like space

Skoda Kamiq drive by Steve Rogers

Remember the Yeti, Skoda's ground breaking family SUV with the Tonka toy looks?

This is its replacement, the Kamiq, and instead of chunky toy think Dr Who's tardis.

Kamiq is the smallest in Skoda's trio of SUVs coming under Karoq and the big seven seat Kodiaq, and shares much of what you will find in a Seat Arona and Volkswagen T-Cross which are all part of the VW family.

It might be classed as small but is anything but once inside hence the tardis reference. This is a spacious package all round with a healthy amount of legroom for back seat passengers. Plenty of space for adult legs here and it has not been achieved by slicing into boot capacity, which is a handy 400 litres and not far off best in the class.

It is family practical too with a wide opening tailgate and a few hooks and tethering points to stop things rolling around. The double sided boot mat is really useful but is a 75 quid extra. Come on Skoda that should be buckshee.

Skoda always tries to throw in some 'simply clever' touches so here are four things to make you smile: a mini sized umbrella slotted into the driver's door frame, just like a Rolls Royce; an ice scraper tucked into the fuel filler cap; a seat belt slot to stop them disappearing when the split back seats are lifted back into place; and a funnel on the windscreen washer bottle. Now isn't that thoughtful but I put on my glum face at the sight of a hand brake rather than an electronic parking brake. That is so 20th century, just like an ignition key. Thankfully this Kamiq has a starter button.

Does Kamiq catch the eye of onlookers? Hardly, it is a plain Jane up against Renault Captur, Nissan Juke, Peugeot 2008 or Ford Puma and it is the same inside, not much character and lots of black although there should be no complaints with trim and build quality, and isn't space the key here anyway.

What I do like about the dashboard is the simplicity whether it is the driver's binnacle where you can toggle between the various menus, or the centre console which retains physical switches for heating and that is a bonus these days.

The standard central touchscreen is eight inches but you can spec up to the 9.2in version that includes navigation and voice control. It will set you back £930 and is tempting because it is a super clear, fast reacting system and so easy to use.

I was in it all the time switching off lane assist which is annoying on anything other than motorways. Trouble is the default setting is 'on' when the engine is fired up, so it is tap this, tap that, five annoying times to turn it off. Why can't we have a simple switch?

On the petrol engine front the choice is three-cylinder one litre with 94 or 114bhp and a 148bhp 1.5 four cylinder. I was glad to have the 114bhp version because it is a cracking engine with lively pick up and fuss free cruising thanks to the six speed gearbox. The lower output makes do with a five speed.

The delivery driver set the economy bar high with 51mpg for his 160 mile mainly motorway journey, too high for me as I ended the week on 45.2 some way off Skoda's 52.3mpg average, but I could live with that as Kamiq is a no nonsense fun car to drive on any road and is pretty comfortable into the bargain.

Kamiq's spec sheet is reasonable from the start but the next along the line SE is the favoured model and has just about all that is needed including wireless smartlink, two USB-C ports, one touch front and rear electric windows, LED headlights, a range of safety features and rear parking sensors. No reversing camera on SE is a disappointment and the low slung front passenger seat needs a height adjuster.

A fair question is why bother with a traditional family hatchback when you can pay less for a small SUV with just as much space? Kamiq is good value with only the Dacia Duster beating it on price.

Kamiq will never enjoy the cult following of the Yeti but when wading through the long list of small SUVs it has to be a contender.

Fast facts

Kamiq SE 6sp manual

£20,985 (starts £19,095)

1-litre TSI 108bhp

0-62mph 10.2secs; 120mph

52.3mpg combined

124g/km. 1st VED £175

Insurance group 13

Boot 400-1395 litres

 

Tidy Town Team remakes part of Centenary Square

Members of Llangollen Tidy Town Team, pictured, have undertaken a remake of the corner garden area of Centenary Square. 

The area had deteriorated with people walking over the plants, dogs being allowed to foul the area, the growth of persistent weeds and cigarette ends being dropped.

On behalf of Llangollen Town Council and with the expert guidance of Chris Morris, some plants were repositioned, the area dug out, levelled, lined and filled with some 2.5 tonnes of local slate by members of the team who are all volunteers.