Additional parking for iconic Powys beauty spot

National Trust Cymru are preparing to start work this week on improving the existing facilities at the Pont ar Daf car parking area at the foot of Pen-y-Fan, creating a fit-for-purpose car park from which visitors can access the iconic Brecon Beacons.

With the addition of new visitor facilities, the popular countryside parking spot will become a welcoming starting point for the 350,000 people who walk up Pen-y-Fan each year.

The new and improved car park will add around 200 more spaces, giving visitors access to a total of nearly 260 safe car parking spaces away from the busy A470 road – which is often packed on both sides of the road with vehicles, leading to congestion and fears about safety.

Cared for by National Trust Cymru, the 3,327 hectares of land around Pen-y-Fan in the Beacons attracts a growing number of visitors each year with limited parking causing problems.

Alan Kearsley-Evans, general manager of National Trust Cymru for the Brecon Beacons and Gower, said: “These planned improvements have long been needed and will transform the visitor welcome at Pont ar Daf at the foot of this iconic mountain.

“Improving the car park is a key part of our work in looking after the Brecon Beacons, caring for the land around Pen-y-Fan and for the network of over 70km of footpaths so that thousands of people can continue to enjoy walking in this area.”

Disabled parking spaces will be provided alongside parking provision for minibuses, coaches and cyclists and an area for the emergency services and other similarly related users of the Beacons.

Planned new visitor facilities will include toilets with disabled access, a changing places toilet and baby changing facilities, some of which will be available 24 hours a day. Improvements to signage, footpaths and information will also allow people to better plan their day.

When complete later this year, the new car park at Pont ar Daf will be free to park for National Trust members and non-members will be charged a flat fee of £7.50 per car to park. As a charity the trust relies on income received from visitors to help them look after the special places in their care. By introducing car parking charges at Pont ar Daf in the future they can raise vital funds to maintain facilities and carry out important conservation work in the Brecon Beacons.

A police car monitors traffic as members of the public flock to Pen-y-Fan in the Brecon Beacons, with the Pont ar Daf car park seen in the background

Redevelopment of the site will be carried out in a sustainable way, using local businesses and materials where possible and designed to be in keeping with the natural surroundings of the area and designated landscape of the Brecon Beacons National Park.

Electric vehicle charging points, the establishment of trees throughout, space for those choosing to travel by bus or by bike and areas to accommodate further sustainable transport solutions will support a greener future for Pont ar Daf.

Lhosa Daly, interim director of National Trust Cymru, said: “The Brecon Beacons are one of the most loved and visited countryside sites in Wales and we’re looking forward to work beginning on the new car park and visitor facilities at Pont ar Daf.

“We want to ensure everyone who comes here has a welcome fitting of this special place by providing a great start to a day out enjoying the nature and beauty found outdoors.”

With work scheduled to take place over the summer and autumn with a finishing date of winter 2022, National Trust Cymru would like to reassure visitors that disruption to current parking and facilities will be minimal.

The plans for the site have been developed by working with key stakeholders within the National Park. The project has been made possible thanks to part funding by the Welsh Government through the Visit Wales tourism investment support scheme.

For more details on the project and to see plans for the improvements planned at Pont ar Daf, visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/brecon-beacons/.