Somerset Council is driving forward its plans to improve road safety on the A361 Frome bypass where five people have died in tragic fatal collisions over the last five years.
Plans for a 50mph speed limit and engineering works form part of the package to improve safety along the bypass where AI cameras were installed last year to monitor speed, seatbelt wearing and mobile phone use.
The Council will now launch a consultation this week on the proposal to reduce the speed limit from 60mph to 50mph on the bypass, used by around 15,000 motorists a day.
Once the order is advertised, and subject to any objections being resolved, a scheme to implement the reduced speed limit would tie into the proposals for resurfacing work at the junction, currently planned from 7-20 May. Evening closure would be put in place and widely advertised.
Councillor Richard Wilkins, Somerset Council’s Lead Member for Transport and Waste, said:
We are developing further plans for making this road safer with an improved road surface, and measures to reduce traffic speeds through the proposed speed limit and introduction of central hatching to reduce the road width, where feasible.
We are also looking at carrying out a significant vegetation cutback to help further improve the visibility at the junction.
The road markings will be more visible and make a slight noise warning when driven over.
We share the concerns of the community about the number of incidents on this stretch of road.
Driver behaviour contributes to around 90 per cent of serious road collisions we would urge all drivers – if you are getting behind the wheel of a car please act responsibly.
