MINI roundabouts on a main road in Kinmel Bay are due to be removed in the new year, with “give way” junctions reinstated in their place.

Resurfacing work to remove the mini roundabouts, on St Asaph Avenue, is expected to be carried out by Conwy County Borough Council between January 15 and February 2, 2024, weather permitting.

A council spokesperson said: “Removing the mini roundabouts on St Asaph Avenue has been in our plans for some time.

“Carrying out the work at the same time as the planned resurfacing is the most cost effective way to achieve this.

“As part of the work, the mini roundabouts will be removed and the side junctions will revert to give way, with signage replaced.

“As usual, when we do resurfacing work, there will be signs up in advance, and we’ll deliver letters to homes and businesses which are directly affected, as well as put information on our website and social media.”

Darren Millar, Clwyd West MS, welcomed the news, having been calling for the removal of the mini roundabouts for some time.

He said: “Both the resurfacing and removal of the mini roundabouts will be very welcome news to people in Kinmel Bay.

“The mini roundabouts have been very unpopular since they were installed some years ago, and visibility on the Denbigh Circle/St Asaph Avenue junction was dangerous, leading to a number of accidents and near misses.

“Over the years, I have had meetings with council officers to highlight safety concerns regarding this road and to call for the T-junction, which was previously there and worked fine, to be reinstated.

“I have also repeatedly called for the poor road surface along Denbigh Circle to be addressed. 

“I am, therefore, extremely pleased that the council have finally seen sense and will be removing the mini roundabouts and resurfacing the road, making the stretch safer for all.”

County councillors representing the Kinmel Bay ward, Cllrs Kay Redhead and Nigel Smith, were also pleased by the news.

Cllr Redhead, though unhurt by the incident, was involved in a crash at the mini roundabout connecting St Asaph Avenue and Chester Avenue in October 2022.

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At the time, she said she felt such incidents at mini roundabouts on St Asaph Avenue were becoming too frequent, adding either more needed to be done to prevent speeding, or they needed to be removed.

Meanwhile, Cllr Smith had previous labelled them "dangerous", and had urged their removal since 2012

Cllr Redhead said: “Having had an accident myself on one of these roundabouts that wasn’t my fault, and witnessing daily near-misses, I welcome their removal.

“Myself and the other two county councillors for Kinmel Bay, Michael and Nigel Smith, have listened to residents and worked closely with the council to improve safety on this road, which includes the removal of these mini roundabouts.

“I appreciate there will be disruption to residents, but it’s one of the quietest times of the year to undertake this work.”

Cllr Smith added: “I fully support the removal of these roundabouts on safety grounds and have campaigned for that for over 10 years.

“Towyn and Kinmel Bay Town Council has funded three ‘speed-sensing’ signs to assist in managing the speed on St Asaph Avenue, in preparation of their removal, making five on St Asaph Avenue in total.

“The town council has also installed two on the A548 coast road – one in Towyn, and one in Kinmel Bay, and one on Gors Road, Towyn.”

The new road surface will be marked with standard “give way” junction markings, where priority will be given to St Asaph Avenue, and side roads required to give way.

Monitoring of the speeds along St Asaph Avenue will be conducted following completion of the works, but it is anticipated that the new 20mph speed limit will assist in improving safety.