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Bristol Clean Air Zone increases holiday costs

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TRAVELLERS jetting off for holidays from Bristol Airport face an unexpected extra charge for getting there.

On November 28, Bristol Council will introduce a Clean Air Zone and charge drivers who enter the Zone.

The Council says, “the Zone will help improve air quality by reducing harmful levels of air pollution caused by traffic. It will also help ensure Bristol benefits from a healthy and natural environment.”

However, the extra charge will hit travellers heading to Bristol Airport from Wales.

The most popular route to Bristol Airport for travellers from Wales and north of Bristol takes drivers through Shirehampton and along the A4 (Portway) Road. A stretch of the road to the Airport is within the Clean Air Zone, meaning drivers heading there for their holiday flights will get charged £9 each way.

In 2019, the last year before the Covid pandemic, the Airport carried just under 9m passengers on 70,000 flights.

Bristol City Council confirmed: “The most direct routes from the M32 and the M5 Southbound to Bristol Airport will take vehicles through the Clean Air Zone. The Zone will have advanced signage on the highway network.

“We are working with Bristol Airport to help make people aware of the Zone to plan their journeys in advance and consider public transport options.”

WEST WALES TRAVELLERS FACE LONG TREK

That’s not much help to travellers from West Wales.

Suppose a family of two adults and children aged six and nine plan to travel on December 1, and their holiday flight leaves at 6:00am. They would have to leave Haverfordwest on an overnight train leaving at 7:30pm the previous evening. They would change at Cardiff, again at Bristol Temple Meads to catch the Airport shuttle, and arrive at the Airport at around half-past midnight.

The total cost of a return journey, assuming their return flight landed in the early afternoon on December 8, would be £329.40 with four changes on the return leg and a replacement bus service for part of the journey from Cardiff, arriving back in Haverfordwest at 10:20 at night.

Even the cheapest possible fare, restricting travel times to off-peak periods, is £207.

On top of that cost, you can add the hassle of corralling tired children in the middle of the night, shifting luggage while changing trains, and hanging around the Airport waiting for a flight out and transport back to Bristol Temple Meads after hopefully clearing customs in good time.

Travelling by bus is cheaper – £140 – but arriving at Bristol Airport in the early morning hours will take over nine hours and involve five changes, or a direct bus means you’d end up spending a night in an Airport hotel after a seven-hour journey.

The cheapest accommodation on November 30 for a family of four near Bristol Airport is £100.

AIRPORT KEEN TO TELL TRAVELLERS

Bristol Airport told us they were “keen” for the story to be covered, especially as it affects travellers from Wales.

A spokesperson for Bristol Airport told The Herald: “Bristol Airport urges passengers travelling by car to check on Bristol City Council’s website whether their vehicle will be charged and to plan their route in advance. Our own website will be updated shortly with new travel advice.

“As an alternative to driving, National Express runs a regular and direct service from Cardiff and Newport to the Airport.”

Business

First wind turbine components arrive as LNG project moves ahead

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THE FIRST ship carrying major components for Dragon LNG’s new onshore wind turbines docked at Pembroke Port yesterday afternoon, marking the start of physical deliveries for the multi-million-pound renewable energy project.

The Maltese-registered general cargo vessel Peak Bergen berthed at Pembroke Dock shortly after 4pm on Wednesday, bringing tower sections and other heavy components for the three Enercon turbines that will eventually stand on land adjacent to the existing gas terminal at Waterston.

A second vessel, the Irish-flagged Wilson Flex IV, is due to arrive in the early hours of this morning (Thursday) carrying the giant rotor blades.

The deliveries follow a successful trial convoy on 25 November, when police-escorted low-loader trailers carried dummy loads along the planned route from the port through Pembroke, past Waterloo roundabout and up the A477 to the Dragon LNG site.

Dragon LNG’s Community and Social Performance Officer, Lynette Round, confirmed the latest movements in emails to the Herald.

“The Peak Bergen arrived yesterday with the first components,” she said. “We are expecting another delivery tomorrow (Thursday) onboard the Wilson Flex IV. This will be blades and is currently showing an ETA of approximately 03:30.”

The £14.3 million project, approved by Welsh Ministers last year, will see three turbines with a combined capacity of up to 13.5 MW erected on company-owned land next to the LNG terminal. Once operational – expected in late 2026 – they will generate enough electricity to power the entire site, significantly reducing its carbon footprint.

Port of Milford Haven shipping movements showed the Peak Bergen approaching the Haven throughout Wednesday morning before finally tying up at the cargo berth in Pembroke Dock. Cranes began unloading operations yesterday evening.

Weather conditions are currently favourable for this morning’s arrival of the Wilson Flex IV, which was tracking south of the Smalls at midnight.

The abnormal-load convoys carrying the components from the port to Waterston are expected to begin next week, subject to final police and highway approvals.

A community benefit fund linked to the project will provide training opportunities and energy-bill support for residents in nearby Waterston, Llanstadwell and Neyland.

Further updates will be issued by Dragon LNG as the Port of Milford Haven as the delivery programme continues.

Photo: Martin Cavaney

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Crime

Banned for 40 months after driving with cocaine breakdown product in blood

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A MILFORD HAVEN woman has been handed a lengthy driving ban after admitting driving with a controlled drug in her system more than ten times over the legal limit.

SENTENCED AT HAVERFORDWEST

Sally Allen, 43, of Wentworth Close, Hubberston, appeared before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (Dec 4) for sentencing, having pleaded guilty on November 25 to driving with a proportion of a specified controlled drug above the prescribed limit.

The court heard that Allen was stopped on August 25 on the Old Hakin Road at Tiers Cross while driving an Audi A3. Blood analysis showed 509µg/l of Benzoylecgonine, a breakdown product of cocaine. The legal limit is 50µg/l.

COMMUNITY ORDER AND REHABILITATION

Magistrates imposed a 40-month driving ban, backdated to her interim disqualification which began on November 25.

Allen was also handed a 12-month community order, requiring her to complete 10 days of rehabilitation activities as directed by the Probation Service.

She was fined £120, ordered to pay £85 prosecution costs and a £114 surcharge. Her financial penalties will be paid in £25 monthly instalments from January 1, 2026.

The bench—Mrs H Roberts, Mr M Shankland and Mrs J Morris—said her guilty plea had been taken into account when passing sentence.

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Local Government

Sewage leak at Pembroke Commons prompts urgent clean-up works

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Council pollution officers say they have no enforcement powers over Welsh Water infrastructure

SEWAGE contamination on the Commons in Pembroke has prompted an urgent response from pollution officers, after a leak was reported by a member of the public on Tuesday.

Pembrokeshire County Council’s Pollution Control Team confirmed they were alerted yesterday afternoon to sewage surrounding a manhole cover on the site. The Herald understands that officers immediately notified Welsh Water (DCWW) network technicians to investigate the incident “as a matter of urgency”.

County councillor Jonathan Grimes, who represents Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, said the authority had been clear that it holds no enforcement powers over Welsh Water assets.

“Whilst we work constructively with Welsh Water, we have no authority to intervene on their apparatus or to carry out enforcement action against them for such pollution incidents,” the Pollution Control Team said in a statement shared with the councillor.

Urgent works underway

Council officers visited the site on Wednesday morning alongside contractors and Welsh Water technicians to assess clean-up options. According to the team, works will include cleaning the contaminated ground in and around the manhole cover and fencing off the affected area “until safe”.

Cllr Grimes said officers would return to the scene on Thursday to check on progress and ensure the area is properly secured.

Residents who notice any further issues have been urged to contact the Pollution Control Team directly.

Further updates are expected later this week.

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