£400k of funding for Taunton's Firepool project

Firepool and the Taunton Station Access have received the funds to build the new signalised junction on Trenchard Way, Taunton.

This £1.27million project will affect both the Firepool development and the new multi-storey car park at Taunton railway station.

A spokesperson for HotSW LEP said: "It includes pedestrian and cycle crossing facilities as well as the widening of an existing signal-controlled pedestrian / cycle crossing located at the Station Approach. This is on the line of the proposed boulevard which is to run through the Firepool Development providing a high-quality direct link for pedestrians and cyclists between the railway station and the town centre."

Funding of around £21million has been given to projects in the South West, including Torquay Gateway, Exeter Science Park Grow-Out and The Wedding Centre of Excellence in Plymouth.

Karl Tucker, chair of the HotSW LEP, said: “This is great news for our area, and we can’t wait to see the work getting underway in the coming weeks. Each of these projects has a role to play in contributing to the economic recovery and longer-term growth in our area.

"The funding we have been able to award to these projects through our allocation of the Getting Building Fund will help to get projects underway or accelerate their progress, creating jobs and economic stimulus.

“We also recognise there are other important projects that still need funding and we will continue to work closely with Government to secure further funding in the future so that we can continue to provide support where it is most needed in our area’s recovery.”

The HotSW LEP secured a total funding allocation of £35.4m last summer – the highest allocation in the South West - from the Government’s Getting Building campaign, designed to restart the economy.

Shovel-ready projects were chosen that had a solid business case in place, would create new jobs and contribute to a green recovery.