Introduction
A government-funded Somerset Council Highways scheme is getting underway in June to replace a deteriorating 51-year-old concrete road and motorway junction.
The Council’s contractor Heidelberg Materials will be refurbishing Junction 26 of the M5 along with the A38 Chelston link road near Wellington, built in 1974.
Doing nothing would mean ongoing piecemeal patching with frequent delays and higher costs in the long run.
The motorway junction and A38 Chelston link road will be closed from 15 June until late September.
How the project will be done
The contractor will use an innovative technique known as rubblization to completely break up the existing concrete road surface using heavy machinery. Instead of removing 7,300 tonnes of concrete from site, the materials will be retained and recycled as sub-base for the new road.
This modern recycling method, often used on airport runways, will save 200 tonnes in carbon and around 1,130 lorry movements, compared to traditional road construction methods. This is achieved by removing the need to export waste material and quarry and import new stone.
This is better for the environment, but it also means the work will be completed faster, minimising disruption as much as possible.
Traffic management
Traffic management Due to the depth of excavations required around the Junction 26 roundabout, the project will require a complete closure of Junction 26 and the A38 link road (from J26 to Foxmoor Business Park) from 15 June to late September. Access will be maintained to Foxmoor Business Park from Chelston Roundabout.
The road closure dates have been meticulously coordinated with National Highways to avoid conflicts with their upcoming motorway network work. The central government funding is time-sensitive, and the next available window for this project would be 2028. This programme also accommodates National Highways’ need to access its gritting depot off the Chelston Link Road during winter.
Your questions answered
What is happening at Junction 26 and the Chelston Link Road?
Somerset Council Highways scheme is refurbishing Junction 26 of the M5 and the A38 Chelston link road near Wellington, which are made of concrete and were originally built in 1974.
Why is it necessary to replace the road now?
The road is over 50 years old and rapidly deteriorating. Doing nothing would mean ongoing piecemeal patching with frequent delays and higher costs in the long run. The timeframe has been agreed with National Highways and is coordinated with forthcoming M5 works. It also considers the need for National Highways to access its gritting depot off the Chelston Link Road during winter. The funding is time-sensitive, and with other planned works, the next available window for this project would not be until 2028.
Will it be better?
Yes, it will be a smoother, quieter road surface with improved drainage to help prevent surface water flooding.
Are you widening it or adding lanes?
No, the funding is for maintenance only but it will be a much improved carriageway.
How will traffic be managed during the project?
Due to the depth of excavations required around the Junction 26 roundabout, there will be a complete closure of Junction 26 and the A38 link road (from J26 to Foxmoor Business Park) from 15 June to late September.
What about access to Foxmoor Business Park?
Access to Foxmoor Business Park will be maintained from Chelston Roundabout.
What is the funding for this project?
The project has secured £5.7 million of Government funding.
Why can’t you do it another way without closing the junction?
It is not possible to keep J26 open, even on a limited basis, whilst maintaining safe conditions for both the workforce and users of the junction.
We will be working half-and-half (East and West), this is to let the small number of National Highways Operational Vehicles through. These vehicles will sometimes need to navigate the roundabout in the wrong direction and via dynamic agreement with the project team as they will be travelling through a live construction site.
Added to this, the A38 Chelston Link Road, will not be open for any traffic from J26 to Foxmoor Business Park – the width of the road in this location does not enable two-way flows to be maintained whilst the rubblization works are undertaken. Any traffic management solutions which risk queuing on the M5 present safety risks which are unacceptable.
How will you manage traffic impacts around Wellington and Taunton?
We understand there will be impacts, particularly at peak times. We will carefully monitor the diversion route and have liaised with our Devon colleagues to ensure no works take place on the A38 diversion route during this time, unless it is an emergency. We will also liaise closely with local communities to address any issues that arise.
What is innovative about this project?
The project will use a technique called rubblization, which involves breaking up the existing concrete road surface using heavy machinery. The 7,300 tonnes of concrete will be retained and recycled as sub-base for the new road, rather than being removed from the site.
What are the environmental benefits of this method?
This recycling method will save 200 tonnes of carbon and reduce around 1,130 lorry movements compared to traditional road construction methods. It eliminates the need to export waste material and import new stone, making it more environmentally friendly and faster to complete.
What about local businesses?
We will liaise closely with all businesses in the area to address any concerns. As outlined access to Foxmoor Business Park will be maintained, as we know it is vital for businesses there. We will monitor traffic management and movements on the diversion route to minimize disruption.
Will we be able to use the barriers at the services?
Access to the service station from the local road network has always been for authorised vehicles only, and therefore only authorised vehicles will we be able to use the barriers at the service station.
Our roads are already damaged in places. The additional traffic will make these even worse? Therefore, can these be patched first quickly?
Our highway maintenance colleagues will be undertaking preventative defect repairs on the A38 up until the works start.
The Megabus or Falcon bus will not be operating. What are you doing to replace these?
We are in contact with the bus service providers – unfortunately we can confirm that the Falcon service, provided by Stagecoach, will not be servicing the Wellington stop during the works. We will keep an open dialogue with all operators to explore the potential for mitigation measures but ultimately it is the operator’s decision.
Please consult operator websites for any information on services.
The public bus services 22/22A/X22 between Wellington and Taunton is a combined 15-minute frequency on this service throughout the day with most journeys operated by double deck buses.
What shifts will be worked? Can they be increased to speed up the scheme?
There will be daytime, evening, and weekend shifts being worked. The planned shifts allow for safe working given the site constraints, plant movements, and material deliveries.
There are gas works planned that may affect this scheme. Why is this happening at the same time?
Both these works – one owned by Somerset Council, and one owned by Wales and West Utilities, have been carefully coordinated and there are no direct clashes in terms of traffic flows through Taunton, as the A38 corridor into and through Taunton will be kept clear of works that affect two-way traffic flows.
During both sets of works vehicles can freely use the A38 corridor into and out of Taunton and still head north along the A3065 Silk Mills from the A38 Wellington New Road Roundabout. There will also be no traffic travelling south along the A3065 to join the A38 Wellington New Road roundabout, this will indirectly aid traffic flows over the A38 Wellington New Road Roundabout.
In terms of location, each site is independent of each other and while traffic can use the A38 Corridor to access Taunton, junction 27 is also available for traffic wishing to use the M5 to travel either south of Wellington or head north along the M5 while junction 26 is closed.
The Worlds End Pub junction may become harder to use. Will you be using temporary traffic lights or traffic management to help?
We are aware of the issues at The World’s End junction, this has been the subject of numerous road safety audits and forms part of a Section 106 requirement for the Taylor Wimpy or Vistry site to the west of Taunton on the A38 Wellington Road.
Temporary lights would likely cause greater congestion, as experienced recently following the construction of the right turn lane at Blackdown Garden Centre.
We will be monitoring this junction and will take action to put in place temporary traffic measures if required.
Will traffic systems be updated for Sat nav’s in cars to plan ahead?
We have no control over the sat nav data that is used by a wide range of companies; however, the closure will be shown on the government streetworks portal and will therefore be available for the public to view and for the sat-nav companies to use if they wish.
Contact
If you would like to subscribe to receive the M5 J26 newsletters or would like further information, please contact our Public Liaison Officer: Syed Shah, syed.shah@somerset.gov.uk.
