People can have their say on design changes to the A358 upgrade between the M5 at Taunton and Southfields roundabout at Ilminster.
National Highways is holding a supplementary consultation after making
some refinements to the proposed route following a previous
consultation.
The alterations include:
- changes to access arrangements at Nexus 25 and Mattock’s Tree Green junctions;
- updates to proposals for walker, cyclist, horse-rider and disabled user access;
- a number of new areas identified as suitable for habitat creation;
- a change in location for the main construction compound.
In delivering the scheme, National Highways are aiming to:
• improve the capacity of the road to reduce delays
and queues that occur during peak hours and at key times of the year i.e. the
height of summer.
• support economic growth, facilitating growth in jobs
and housing by providing a free-flowing and reliable connection between the
South East and the South West
• make the road safer, by providing additional
capacity and reducing driver stress. We’ll also improve routes for pedestrians,
cyclists, horse riders in the area
• protect the environment and look for opportunities
to improve it, minimising any unnecessary impact of the scheme on the
surrounding natural and historic environment and landscape
• work with local communities to reduce the impact of
the road, and look for ways to improve local people’s quality of life
• make journey times more reliable and resilient; by
providing more capacity it will become easier to manage traffic when incidents
occur
The supplementary consultation runs from 24 May to 26
June 2022 with feedback helping National Highways develop its planning
application for a Development Consent Order (DCO) to be submitted later this
year.
A DCO is required for all nationally significant
infrastructure projects and will allow for the Planning Inspectorate to make a
recommendation to the Secretary of State, who will decide on whether
development consent should be granted for the proposed scheme.
All plans will be available on a
dedicated consultation website and virtual
exhibition room, that can be accessed from 10:00 on the 24 May 2022.
National Highways is holding three public consultation
events:
• Thursday 26 May from 11am to 8pm: Monks Yard
(Conference Room), Horton Cross Farm, Horton Cross, Ilminster, Somerset, TA19
9PT
• Wednesday 8 June from 11am to 8pm: Somerset County
Cricket Club, The Cooper Associates County Ground, St. James Street, Taunton,
Somerset, TA1 1JT
• Saturday 11 June from 11am to 6pm: Taunton
Racecourse, Orchard Portman, Taunton, Somerset, TA3 7BL
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