THE Gateway park-and-ride in Taunton will re-open on Thursday after travellers moved on from the site.

Somerset County Council has confirmed a group of travellers who had set up home at the Henlade site have now all left.

Council staff are currently at the scene assessing any damage and organising a clean-up operation.

The group left after police and enforcement officers launched an operation to move them on this morning.

Officers moved on to the Gateway site car park, which is closed for a third day, at around 10.30am.

The move came after the travellers moved onto the site at the end of last week.


READ MORE: Taunton park-and-ride site closed for THIRD day as travellers stay put


Earlier, a spokesman for Somerset County Council, which owns the site, said: “We have acted as quickly as possible and staff have been working out of hours to monitor the situation.

"It’s frustrating for us and frustrating for commuters, but we have to follow the legal process.

Somerset County Gazette:

“Two years ago we brought in a permanent injunction on the site, which in this case allowed us to serve notice to leave within hours of the traveller arriving.

“That notice has been ignored and we are set to go to court at the earliest possible opportunity seeking an enforcement notice that we can serve on the group."

Meanwhile, security staff have been brought in at the park-and-ride site in Silk Mills Road, Bishop's Hull, in a bid to prevent any attempt by the group to relocate to that site.

More than 28,000 journeys were made from park-and-ride sites in Taunton in April last year. 

It is estimated around 350 people use the buses each day.

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette:

Somerset County Gazette: