Pont y Werin (

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

for ''The People's Bridge'') is a pedestrian and cyclist bridge spanning the

River Ely The River Ely ( cy, Afon Elái) is in South Wales flowing generally southeast, from Tonyrefail to Cardiff. The river is about long. The Ely's numerous sources lie in the mountains to the south of Tonypandy, near the town of Tonyrefail, ris ...

between

Cardiff Bay Cardiff Bay ( cy, Bae Caerdydd; historically Tiger Bay; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it serves as the river mouth of the River Taff and Ely. The body of w ...

and

Penarth Penarth (, ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in the Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg), Wales, exactly south of Cardiff city centre on the west shore of the Severn Estuary at the southern end of Cardiff Bay. Penarth is a weal ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. Costing approximately £4.5 million, Pont y Werin crosses between the

Cardiff International Sports Village Cardiff International Sports Village ( cy, Pentref Chwaraeon Rhyngwladol Caerdydd) is located in Cardiff Bay in the city of Cardiff, Wales. It is one of the largest Urban renewal, regeneration projects currently in the UK and is a Public-priv ...

and

, allowing the public to travel to the Sports Village via Cogan railway station. Opened on 14 July 2010, the

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- or ...

completes the 6.5 mile (10.5 km) Cardiff Bay circular walk and cycle route, and incorporates a 20-metre opening section to allow river traffic to pass.

Funding

The project to build Pont y Werin ("the People's Bridge") received a pledge of funding from the

Big Lottery Fund The National Lottery Community Fund, legally named the Big Lottery Fund, is a non-departmental public body responsible for distributing funds raised by the National Lottery for "good causes". Since 2004 it has awarded over £9 billion to ...

, and

Sustrans Sustrans is a United Kingdom-based walking, wheeling and cycling charity, and the custodian of the National Cycle Network. Its flagship project is the National Cycle Network, which has created of signed cycle routes throughout the United Kin ...

, intending to complete the bridge by summer 2010. Funding for the new bridge came from the

Welsh Assembly Government Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

(£1.645m),

Cardiff Council Cardiff Council, formally the County Council of the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Cyngor Sir Dinas a Sir Caerdydd) is the governing body for Cardiff, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. The principal area and its council were established ...

(£1.3m), Sustrans (£1.15m),

Cardiff Harbour Authority Cardiff Harbour Authority (CHA) is the managing authority for Cardiff Bay under the Cardiff Bay Barrage Act 1993, and was established on 1 April 2000. It took over responsibility from Cardiff Bay Development Corporation and is responsible for ...

(£250,000) and from the

Vale of Glamorgan Council The Vale of Glamorgan Council is the governing body for the Vale of Glamorgan, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. It was run by the Conservative Party after the 2008 United Kingdom local elections, taking over the council from no overall contr ...

(£200,000). Sustrans used part of a £50m award it received from the Big Lottery Fund in 2007 after winning a national TV vote.Wales Online: ''Pont y Werin bridge takes shape''
/ref>

Construction

The Pont y Werin was designed by Cass Hayward LLP. Building work to create a new bridge over the Ely River commenced in summer 2009. The four main sections, which weigh between 38 and 46 tonnes, were lowered into place by the 1,200-tonne crane, the largest in the UK, over a seven-day period in late March 2010 in the presence of Lee Waters, Director of Sustrans Cymru and Jane Davidson AM, Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing.

Opening

Pont y Werin was originally set to open on 8 June 2010 but the date was pushed back six weeks until 14 July due to a delay in receiving supplies from Germany, but was accessible for vessels to pass beneath the bridge before this date. However none of the cycleway links to the bridge on the

Vale of Glamorgan The Vale of Glamorgan ( cy, Bro Morgannwg ), often referred to as The Vale, is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf to the north, and the Bristol C ...

side, costing £300,000, were ready by 14 July. The bridge was opened by the

Deputy First Minister of Wales The deputy first minister of Wales ( cy, dirprwy brif weinidog Cymru) is the deputy leader of the Welsh Government. The post was created in October 2000 when Mike German of the Welsh Liberal Democrats was appointed Deputy First Minister as part ...

Ieuan Wyn Jones Ieuan Wyn Jones (born 22 May 1949) is a Welsh politician who was the Deputy First Minister in the Welsh Government from 2007 to 2011. He was the Member of the Senedd for the Ynys Môn constituency from 1999 to 2013, and he was also leader of P ...

who was the then Welsh Minister for Transport. Among those in attendance were Jason Stone, Sybil Williams, Lydia Harris and Tim Burns who were nominated by the public to appear on the bridge's portrait benches.

Features

Portraits

Portraits on the bridge feature a laser cut outline of local heroes, celebrities or historic figures, with a bench placed on either side of the river each featuring 3 such personalities chosen by Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan residents. The Portrait Bench is a UK wide art project from sustainable transport charity Sustrans with each bench featuring three life-size sculptures which are laser-cut by Laser Process Ltd from weathering Corten steel. There are nearly 80 installed across the country with Pont y Werin having two benches placed on it – one representing Cardiff and one for Penarth. For the Vale of Glamorgan’s bench, the Vale-born Olympic gold medallist

Nicole Cooke Nicole Denise Cooke, MBE (born 13 April 1983) is a Welsh former professional road bicycle racer and Commonwealth, Olympic and World road race champion. At Beijing in 2008 she became the first British woman to win a Gold Olympic medal in an ...

was chosen who has been a keen supporter of the bridge, urging people to get behind and vote for the project back in 2007. Paralympic gold medallist, Dame Tanni Grey Thompson, has also been a keen supporter of the bridge, speaking publicly about the benefits it will bring to pedestrians, cyclists and disabled people. She also features as a portrait on the bridge. For the Cardiff bench, Sybil Williams, the founder member of Pedal Power, was chosen along with

Cardiff Devils The Cardiff Devils are a Welsh ice hockey team who play in the British Elite Ice Hockey League. The team play at Ice Arena Wales in Cardiff Bay. Cardiff are the reigning EIHL play-off champions, winning their third title in a row after beating ...

player, Jason Stone. The remaining personality for each bench was chosen by a drawing by local primary school pupils. The Cardiff Bay side of the bridge will temporarily be diverted through Victoria Wharf whilst a nearby building project is completed.Vale of Glamorgan Council , Celebrities and local heroes come face to face on Pont y Werin
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References

External links

Sustrans article on Pont y WerinSustrans map of the schemePhotos of the bridge's constructionGuardianCardiff article on the bridge delays
{{DEFAULTSORT:Werin, Pont y Pedestrian bridges in Wales Bridges completed in 2010 Cycling in Wales Bridges in Cardiff Bridges in the Vale of Glamorgan