30mph limit is approved for route linking Hicks Gate and Keynsham

Following a consultation, Bath & North East Somerset Council has confirmed its intention to lower the speed limit on the A4175 Durley Hill – the road linking the Hicks Gate roundabout to Keynsham – from 40mph to 30mph.

The section to be lowered stretches from the existing 30mph limit on the approach to the mini-roundabout at the Durley Hill, Bristol Road and Old Bristol Road junction, to approximately 70 metres south of the Hicks Gate roundabout.

It also includes the length of Durley Hill which is no longer a through route but provides access to the bus gate at its junction with the A4 Bath Road.

The order will come into operation on 18th January 2027.

The council has said that reducing the speed limit to 30mph on Durley Hill will improve safety for all road users, residents and businesses in the area, including pedestrians using the bus stops and visiting Keynsham Cemetery.

It said that Durley Hill forms part of an important cycle route between Keynsham and Bristol, and pedestrian and cycling activity could increase with the lower speed limit.

Lower vehicle speeds could also have a positive impact in reducing vehicle emissions.

Comments of support included: “This proposed speed limit change will greatly assist us residents when turning out of Durley Lane across the traffic to go towards Hicks Gate.

“As people are coming down currently at 40mph, it can be a long wait for a gap, and quite scary sometimes. Sometimes I have to turn left instead and go down to the mini-roundabout to turn back up the hill.

“Cars can sometimes pick up a lot of speed after passing the fire station and starting down the hill. It is especially scary if I’m on my bike or if I’m on foot and needing to cross there for the bus stop.”

There were also calls for the new speed limit to be enforced via a fixed speed camera. However, a highways officer said: “Increased enforcement through the installation of a fixed speed camera has been suggested; however, this falls outside the scope of the current scheme.

“The proposal relates solely to the introduction of a revised speed limit, with any future enforcement measures requiring separate consideration, assessment and funding.”

The council received a comment from one objector who observed: “There is minimal inherent danger associated with the stretch of road currently having a 40mph speed limit and no proof has been presented that reducing this speed limit reduces the risk to anybody.

“It is not a major pedestrian or cycling route, and it is unlikely to ever be considered so. It is relatively far from any current residential dwellings.

“The proposal serves only the purposes of spending public money on a pointless scheme and annoying car users by imposing speed limit restrictions, once again, far lower than required on the stretch of road in question.”