Proposals for a new roundabout in the village of Peasedown St John near Bath will soon go on display, after nearly 20 years of lobbying for its installation.
Cllr Gavin Heathcote and Cllr Karen Walker at A367/Bath Road junction
Since 2005, councillors past and present have been calling for funding to be made available to make safety changes to the Bath Road junction with the A367 bypass.
Last year, the campaign was given fresh hope after changes were made to the way funding was allocated to road infrastructure projects.
B&NES Councillor Karen Walker (Independent, Peasedown), said: “Instead of local councils, the government now allocates funding for road improvements to regional combined authorities, and here locally that’s the West of England Combined Authority, or WECA.
“After initially discussing the need for safety improvements at this junction with Mayor Dan Norris, Cllr Gavin Heathcote and I invited WECA staff to Peasedown last year in a new attempt to secure funding for a roundabout at the southern end of our village.”
Cllr Karen Walker and Cllr Gavin Heathcote received news before May’s local elections that funding had been approved, but pre-election rules meant the announcement couldn’t be made until recently.
B&NES Councillor Gavin Heathcote (Independent, Peasedown) added: “We’re pleased to have secured funding from the new City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement for a roundabout to be built here – it’s fantastic news!
“Residents contact us on a regular basis asking for changes to be made to this junction, it’s still one of the top issues that people talk to us about on the doorstep and at our Advice Surgeries.
“Cllr Karen Walker and I are thrilled to have helped secure this funding for Peasedown!”
A total of £16.5 million is being spent on projects across the West of England, with a proportion being spent in Peasedown St John.
As well as a new roundabout in the village, the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement will pay for:
- The conversion of the bus stops at the top of Keel’s Hill to a Mobility Hub (where people can switch from one form of transport to another, such as bicycle to bus)
- Upgrades to the bus stops outside the Red Post Inn
- Improvements for cyclists on quiet routes south of Peasedown St John to connect with NCN24, including via Braysdown Lane.
The City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement hopes to ‘level up’ regions across the UK, in and around cities like Bath and Bristol, so they have the same provision of public transport services as Greater London does.
Proposals for the Peasedown roundabout, plus the Mobility Hub, bus stop improvements and cycle enhancements will be available for public viewing from Monday 26th June at www.haveyoursaywest.co.uk.
Following the publication of the proposals, full planning will begin in 2024 with works expected to start on the new roundabout in mid-2025.
The whole project must be completed by 2027 at the latest.
