Councillors green-lit plans for a footbridge over the River Usk connecting Abergavenny and Llanfoist, at a planning meeting earlier this week.

After two years of discussion, Monmouthshire county councillors approved ambitious plans to build a walking and cycling footpath around 100m downstream from the existing Abergavenny bridge.

A meeting of the council’s planning committee on Tuesday decided to push the plans through in midst of some opposition from local groups.

MCC officers assured that issues regarding residents’ privacy, and concerns over flooding had been addressed.

Officers also added that despite the objection from Natural Resources Wales, the recommendation for approval stood. ?MCC officers also said that lighting issues could be resolved in future.

Councillor Giles Howard said the visual impact would be ‘minimal’ and the footbridge was a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to address safety issues concerned with the current bridge, but added a condition to improve a landscaping issue.

Having visited the site recently, Councillor Harris spoke of a ‘frightening’ experience involving an articulated lorry on the current bridge.??In support, he said, “I’m happy to stick my hand up for this one.”??

“I’ve wanted this to happen for a long time,” said Councillor Maureen Powell. “I think it has long been needed. I am really pleased to see it happen.”

The 60m footbridge combines a three-metre-wide footway and cycleway built from steel beams covered in rain-screen timber cladding, and complete with anti-slip coating across the walkway.

A council report released before the meeting said that access to the proposed bridge will be improved by a 100m permanent footpath stretching from the existing access gate on Merthyr Road, to the existing footpath along the northern bank of the River Usk. Plans revealed that the current footpath and National Cycle Route will be widened and resurfaced.

The design takes environmental and visual impacts into account, wherein the height of the bridge is to be above usual flood levels with a consideration made for future climate change effects.

Planning documents also detail both opposing and supporting voices. National Resources Wales admitted harbouring “significant concerns” with the current proposal, adding that the body would object to the plans unless issues regarding flood management, consideration of protected species laws (namely bats) and environmental management plans were aligned with their own requirements.

Supporting voices published in the council documents point to the ‘dangerous’ aspects of the existing bridge, adding that burgeoning traffic spurred by recent major developments in Llanfoist has added to the danger.