Welsh civils firm selected for £1.4bn road project

The project is funded by the Welsh government and aims to improve accessibility, reduce journey times, provide extra resilience and reliability, and enhance road safety.

The Welsh government claimed it will be one of the UK’s most technically challenging road projects, set to be completed in Wales in summer 2025.

Atlas is a family-run business founded in 2017 by brothers Tony and Lee Gibbons, selected as part of the project’s commitment to creating opportunities for the local economy.

The A465 (Hirwaun to Dowlais) project is set to link the Valleys, South and West Wales to the English Midlands and beyond and will deliver:

• 17.7 kilometres of new dual carriageway
• 6.1 kilometres of sideroads
• More than 14 kilometres of active travel routes
• 38 new culverts (a structure that channels water past an obstacle)
• 30 new bridges
• 28 retaining walls

The scheme’s commitment to creating opportunities for the local economy include:

• Creating more than 2,000 new jobs with over half living in the local area
• Employing 158 apprentices with just under half from the valley’s region
• Supporting more than 66 community initiatives
• Spending more than £200 million in the Valleys supply chain
• Delivering more than 22,000 hours of pupil engagement

To mitigate ecological impacts a series of measures have been taken as part of the project, including the relocation of species, coppiced stools and topsoil impacted by the project and planting more than 55,000 trees in the local area.

Atlas Groundworks Ltd owner Tony Gibbons said: “[The project] has allowed us to upscale our operations and further strengthen our reputation in the construction industry. 

“As a result of this we’ve been able to create new job opportunities for local people and enhance our skills so that we can expand our business services.”

Cabinet secretary for transport and North Wales Ken Skates said: “Fixing our roads is a key priority for us. 

“This project is an incredibly impressive piece of engineering and a fantastic example of how targeted investment in road infrastructure can deliver on many levels, providing jobs for the local community, improving accessibility, supporting education and skills, alongside delivering environmental benefits.”

Tim Wroblewski, associate director and principal environmental planner for TACP (UK) Ltd, added: “The project impacts sensitive habitats, species, and landscapes and through a series of innovative and best practice mitigation measures we’ve been working hard to ensure the project leaves a positive legacy on the environment.”

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The firm was appointed to the upgrade scheme by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), as part of a wider £3.8 billion estate modernisation programme.  

ISG will refurbish and return to use 300 single-person cells at the Category B men’s prison in the Winson Green area of the city. 

It is understood to be the firm’s “largest refurbishment project to date”. 

ISG is also one of four project partners on the MoJ’s £1 billion New Prisons Programme Alliance to deliver four new adult male prisons across the UK. 

The contractor has also been appointed to the MoJ’s five-year, £2.5 billion Constructor Services Framework, providing access to national and regional projects valued up to £30 million. 

“The MoJ continues to be one of our most innovative and progressive customers across a range of measures – from procurement approaches, modern methods of construction (MMC) adoption and as an environmental, social and governance (ESG) trailblazer,” said Alister McNeil, sector director for justice, ISG. 

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