Pen-y-Clip road viaduct, Penmaenmawr 1961

The Pen-y-Clip Road Viaduct is a notable piece of infrastructure located in the seaside town of Penmaenmawr on the North Wales coast. Built in the 1930s, this viaduct now carries the A55 Expressway, a vital trunk road running along the northern coast of Wales, connecting towns and facilitating travel between England and Wales.

Constructed to navigate the challenging coastal terrain, the Pen-y-Clip Viaduct spans a steep valley just east of Penmaenmawr town centre. Its concrete and steel structure allows the road to maintain a smooth, elevated path, avoiding the winding and narrow lanes below.

Remarkably, the viaduct is still in use today, but with a significant change: both lanes now carry eastbound traffic only. To accommodate westbound vehicles, a new tunnel was built nearby in the 1990s, providing a safer and more modern route.

Beneath the road viaduct runs a railway viaduct, highlighting the area’s layered transport history and the coexistence of rail and road infrastructure in this narrow coastal corridor.