The Area covered by the UDP 

The UDP covers the whole of the County Borough of Bridgend. The County Borough is at the geographical heart of South Wales. It covers an area of approximately 25,500 hectares, and in 1996 had an estimated population of 130,241

The County Borough extends approximately 20km from east to west, encompassing the Ogmore, Garw and Llynfi valleys to the north, and bordering the Bristol Channel to the south. The largest settlements are the towns of Bridgend and Maesteg and the seaside resort of Porthcawl. Bridgend is the largest of these settlements and is the administrative centre for the area.

The County Borough has an excellent transportation infrastructure with the M4 motorway traversing the southern part of the County Borough in an east-west alignment, providing fast road access to Cardiff, Swansea, the rest of South Wales and beyond. Additionally, an inter-city high speed rail service linking the area with the whole of the national rail network, provides fast and efficient rail transport, whilst Cardiff-Wales Airport is only 19 kilometres away.