Update 12/01/2018
Temporary home to school transport arrangements are being put in place due to the short-term closure of Cyfyng Road, Ystalyfera, from Monday 15th January, 2018.
The road will be closed to the public for approximately 5 days so tree removal work above a retaining wall can go ahead safely. The temporary closure is essential to ensure the safety of the public and the safety of the engineering team carrying out the work.
Two large sized school buses serving Cwmtawe Community School (routes 902 and 905) currently use Cyfyng Rd and another large school bus serving Godre’r Graig Primary school (route 950) also uses Cyfyng Rd.
These buses will not be able to collect along Commercial Rd, Wern Rd and Cyfyng Rd during the temporary closure and will have to stay on the B4599 YnysyDarren Rd instead.
Alternative Travel arrangements
The council has written to the parents of pupils affected with details of the alternative arrangements. These are:
For the bus serving Godre’r Graig Primary School
The council has arranged for two minibuses to collect the pupils from the affected area to bring them down to the bus stop at the Swan Hotel to meet the large bus in the morning and take them back up in the afternoon.
For the buses serving Cwmtawe Community School
The council has informed the pupils they need to find their way down to either the Swan Hotel, or via the underpass to a location outside the rugby field on Ynysydarren Rd and the junction with Ffordd Glandwr or to the third location at the junction of Hodgson’s road and A4067.
The council also arranged with the schools to send further text alerts to the parents as a reminder.
Temporary Public Transport arrangements
The current First Cymru X50/51 bus service will stay on the Ynysydarren Road and only serve Farteg area of Ystalyfera during the temporary road closure.
South Wales Transport has provided an alternative timetable for its 121 service during the temporary closure and it will not serve Cilmaengwyn while the work is going on. However it advises there were only two people using the service from the area but they have now “moved away” so there should be no negative effect.
Public meeting and appeals
Arrangements are being made for the public meeting over the landslides issue being held at Ysgol Gyfun Ystalyfera on January 29, 2018 where the latest geological information relating to the area will be made public and questions will be taken.
The January 29 date was fixed to ensure the authority had comprehensive data from its consultants relating to local ground conditions.
Appeals by four people challenging Neath Port Talbot Council’s decision to evacuate them from their homes in Cyfyng Road following landslides will resume in March this year.
The residents/owners of three properties in Cyfyng Road appealed to a Residential Property Tribunal held in a Cardiff hotel on Monday, December 18, 2017 against Neath Port Talbot Council’s decision – acting on advice from specialist geologists - to impose Emergency Prohibition Orders (EPOs) on them in August 2017.