New cattle grid for North Hill in Minehead

Somerset County Council's (SCC) Highways Team have finished refurbishing the cattle grid on Hill Road, North Hill.

The work meant partial road closures throughout December.

“This was a major operation which required a lot of man hours, and more than a little patience from the public, for which we’d like to say thank you,” said SCC cabinet member for highways and transport, cllr John Woodman.

“The team were able to capitalise on the fact that Covid restrictions meant fewer tourists and less traffic in general.”

The old cattle grid was causing a danger to drivers. This is because the grid was cut into the hill in a step which was causing onboard computers on modern vehicles to apply advanced braking systems for what appeared to be an obstruction.

The council’s highways team and contractor Skanska have completely redesigned the grid and its carriageway approaches to create a virtually smooth ride across the grid.

The work included raising about 90 feet of road considerably with new kerb lines, enhanced drainage and gullies and the new galvanised grid with and new fencing along with a wider gate.