 In 1987 South Glamorgan County Council had intended to build a viaduct cross the River Taff and then go onto an elevated section through Butetown " on <unk> " . But the newly formed Cardiff Bay Development Corporation along with local residents objected to the scheme that they said would cut through Butetown and split the community , creating an unnecessary physical barrier between the two areas to the north and south of the link road . By 1988 South Glamorgan County Council had agreed to change the design of the link road , despite having already spent 6 years of design work on the link road meant that a tunnel had to be built instead . The cost of the Butetown Link Road was estimated to cost £ 35 million , but this had risen to £ <unk> in 1988 , before the design change . 
