Work is due to start later this month on measures aimed at improving safety along the Frome bypass.
Somerset Council has been developing proposals to reduce the risk of serious and fatal collisions on the stretch of road. This phase includes junction resurfacing works to improve the road surface, the introduction of a 50mph speed limit on the A361 and 40mph on the A362 approach, and central hatching along the bypass.
The work is scheduled to begin during the week commencing 11th May and will take place over three nights, with a full road closure between 7pm and 6am.
The A361 Frome Bypass, used by around 15,000 motorists a day, has seen five fatalities in the last five years, four of them between 2023 and 2024.
Residents have said Somerset Council’s plans do not go far enough, calling for stronger measures including traffic lights at the A361/A362 junction, following a recent petition.
Somerset Council’s Lead Member for Transport and Waste Services, Councillor Richard Wilkins, said, “We are continuing to develop plans for further phases of future schemes to improve the safety of the junction and in May will receive the output from the feasibility report which we will then be able to review to consider the next steps around this.
“We share the concerns of the community about the number of incidents on this stretch of road. Driver behaviour contributes to around 90 per cent of serious road collisions and we would urge all drivers, if you are getting behind the wheel of a car, please act responsibly.”
Pictured: the A361/ A362 junction – Google Maps
