Tendering process for highways scheme re-opens

A highways project in Llangollen has reopened its tendering process following a re-scoping exercise to bring the scheme within budget.Denbighshire County Council’s 4 Great Highways project aims to enhance the landscape and improve accessibility, interpretation and signage in the town.The project is part of investment by the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund that was secured through a joint application between Denbighshire County Council and Wrexham County Borough Council for the Clwyd South Constituency.The application was supported by Simon Baynes MP.A total of £3.8m was allocated to Denbighshire to invest in the communities of Llangollen, Llantysilio, Corwen and surrounding areas.In August, the tendering process to find a contractor was previously opened. However, due to the current market and general levels of construction inflation, all tenders submitted to deliver the original design proposals were significantly overbudget.Over the past few, the project team has been re-scoping the scheme to ensure that the objective to deliver 10,000 sq ft of public realm improvements is still achievable within the budget.On 26 October, the new plans were presented to the project board for approval. No additions have been made to the project design as the main priority is to ensure that the scheme can be delivered within the allocated budget.The tendering process for the re-scoped project is now open until midday on the 27 November. Anyone interested in tendering for the work can do so via Sell2Wales.Cllr Barry Mellor, lead member for environment and transport, said: “The Four Great Highways project team has undertaken a rigorous re-scoping exercise to ensure that we can deliver a worthwhile project within the budget allocated by the UK Government.“We are pleased to now have started the tendering process to find a suitable contractor to complete the works needed to deliver this project and we look forward to appointing a suitable candidate to bring the plans to fruition. Once completed, we hope that these improvements enhance the resident and visitor experience and help to encourage people to spend more time in the town.”