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Search the Public Notice PortalResidents of a growing Somerset town have been given a glimmer of hope that a key coastal road could reopen.
The B3191 Cleeve Hill, which links Watchet to Blue Anchor, served as a key commuting route for locals, and provided a valuable diversionary route for holidaymakers whenever the A39 between Minehead and Williton was congested.
The road was closed indefinitely by Somerset County Council in January 2023 due to concerns about coastal erosion - and while pedestrians and cyclists have been able to use the route since the spring of 2024, motorised vehicles remain banned along this entire stretch.
Somerset Council (which replaced the county council in April 2023) confirmed on Friday (October 24) that the road would be permanently closed to motorised traffic after Hallowe'en - despite a consultation which attracted more than 1,000 local objections.
But the council has now announced it will be pushing the government for funding to reopen the road and protect it from future coastal erosion - estimating it will cost around £37m to achieve this.
Councillor Richard Wilkins, portfolio holder for transport and waste services, has written to transport secretary Heidi Alexander MP, stating that the council had no choice but to permanently close the road due to the risks involved.
He said: "Our ongoing surveys conclude that the road is not safe to re-open due to the risk of a sudden failure of the cliff.
"The road remains closed indefinitely until funding can be found to re-route it and stabilise and protect the cliff from further erosion at that location.
"I am therefore requesting financial assistance to develop and implement a scheme to re-instate this important connection."
Mr Wilkins - who represents the Curry Rivel and Langport division - noted the strength of local feeling in the recent consultation, and laid out to Mrs Alexander how necessary the road is to businesses and residents across west Somerset.
He said: "The consultation has confirmed that there is a high degree of public concern about the potential economic and operational impact of an indefinite closure.
"The ongoing effect of the closure is having a major effect on the economy of Watchet, including the cost to the local economy and the inconvenience in terms of hours lost in delays, the logistics of coping with delivering goods to and from Minehead, as well as the negative effects on tourism.
"There is now only one road into Watchet, over a 150-year-old bridge.
"The B3191 is crucial if the A39 it is closed for maintenance, an accident or, as experienced in recent years, flooding.
"It serves to connect Watchet with nearby communities but also provides access to and from several large caravanning and camping sites which play a key role in the local economy."
The county council commissioned a study in 2020 for addressing the coastal erosion at Watchet and Blue Anchor - which shaped a £3.8m scheme implemented in the summer of 2023 to protect the Anchor's Drop business and nearby properties in Blue Anchor.
Mr Wilkins said the council's preferred option for Cleeve Hill remained the same, and estimated that the cost of implementing this scheme would now be much higher in light of persistent high inflation within the construction sector.
He said: "The best option at Cleeve Hill appears to be to put in place some rock armour and some localised cliff stabilisation (using mesh and nails), as well as moving the road inland.
"This work was costed at up to £28.2m in 2020, and while we have not updated costs in detail since then, the current scheme value with inflation is likely to be of the order of £37m.
"I would welcome an urgent discussion about opportunities for a DfT funding contribution towards the necessary works.
"Funding for such large individual schemes is beyond the scope of our current maintenance grant."
Reopening the road was identified as a priority by the Peninsula Transport sub-national transport body, which brings together councillors from Cornwall, Devon and Somerset.
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Around £1m has already been set aside by the Environment Agency (EA) towards reinforcing the existing cliffs at Watchet.
The Cleeve Hill Development Group put forward plans to realign the B3191 Cleeve Hill inland as part of a development of 136 homes - but these were refused on two occasions by Somerset West and Taunton Council, most recently in January 2023.
Mr Wilkins added: "The closure order can be reversed if funding becomes available, and we will continue to lobby hard for our local communities to ensure a solution can be found and funded."
Rachel Gilmour, the Liberal Democrat MP for Tiverton and Minehead, said she would fully support the council's efforts to secure funding and would continue to bend the ear of ministers on this matter.
She said: "The B3191 between Watchet and Blue Anchor is a vital link in west Somerset, and I am aware of the damaging impact its closure is having on residents and businesses in this area of west Somerset.
"I am disappointed that Mrs Alexander has not taken up my invitation to see for herself the state of the B3191, its dangerous proximity with the cliff edge, and the negative impact being felt locally since its temporary, and now permanent, closure.
"I am now fully committed to supporting Somerset Council’s request for funding from central government to either replace or re-route this important road."
Councillor Cara Strom, who won the Dunster by-election on Thursday (October 23), has added her voice in support of the funding bid.
She said: "The permanent closure of the B3191 is an extremely important issue affecting residents and businesses across our area, and I’m determined to see it resolved.
"I’ve been working closely with our local MP Rachel Gilmour, who has raised it with the transport secretary and is actively exploring alternative solutions.
"We’re all pulling in the same direction, and I’ll continue to work with my colleagues and apply pressure to ensure every option is explored."
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