Long-awaited Bridgwater road wins funding

5:40pm Tuesday 7th October 2008

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FUNDING for a long-awaited Bridgwater road has finally been secured after a battle to put the plans in motion lasting more than 15 years.

The Colley Lane Southern Access Road has been given the go-ahead thanks to private sector funding negotiated by Sedgemoor District Council and Somerset County Council officers, as part of the major south Bridgwater housing development.

A southern access road in the town has been a long-term aspiration of the county council - running back to the early 1990s - but the funds were never available.

The road - which will link the Colley Lane industrial estate to Marsh Lane - is expected to be finished by 2011, and it is hoped it will bring economic, safety and traffic benefits to the town.

Andrew Gilling, of Sedgemoor District Council, said: “This is an important step forward that brings the delivery of this road ever closer.

“The Colley Lane Southern Access Road will not only provide direct access to the industrial estate, it will also reduce traffic congestion along Taunton Road and improve environmental quality for residents.”

The district and county councils also hope the road will encourage new businesses and jobs to Bridgwater to meet their aim of making the town an economic centre in Somerset and the South-West.

The new access road would run in a southerly direction from Parrett Way to Marsh Lane - via a bridge across the River Parrett and the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal - with a new roundabout at the existing Marsh Lane/Showground Road junction.

· Somerset County Council will hold a public consultation on the new road next Wednesday, October 15, at the Canalside Centre in Huntworth.

Plans will be on display to the public from 10am until 9pm, and council staff will be on hand to explain the proposals, answer any questions and listen to views on the proposed route.

County councillor responsible for transport, Hazel Prior-Sankey, said: “The exhibition is a great opportunity for the local community to view the plans for Colley Lane and have their say. The proposals are designed to improve access and ease congestion in Bridgwater.”