Steve Band, 53, has lived in Peasedown St John since around the year 2000. This peaceful village, located just south of Bath and near a busy junction on the A367, is generally tranquil, but one particular traffic hotspot causes frequent frustration.
For Steve, the junction with Bath Road is a daily challenge. “I try to avoid it because it’s just a nightmare,” he explains. He often chooses a longer route out of Peasedown to steer clear of the congestion: “If you’re coming out of the village you could be there for ages. There’s too much traffic.”
This junction has been a subject of local concern for nearly twenty years, with residents campaigning for the introduction of a new roundabout. The hope was that a roundabout would slow down traffic and reduce accidents in this accident-prone area.
READ MORE: ‘No Alternative’ as Council Faces Paying Nearly £300,000 a Year to Retain Bin Depot
READ MORE: Woman Forced to Pay Over £100,000 to Divorce Controlling Husband
In 2023, Bath and North East Somerset Council announced plans to build the long-awaited roundabout. However, the project has recently been shelved due to high costs. Instead, the council is implementing less expensive safety measures such as installing high-friction surfacing and reducing the speed limit from 50mph to 40mph.
Local resident Reverend David Winstanley expressed scepticism about the speed limit reduction. “I don’t think the speed limit’s a problem. I think people sticking to the speed limit is a problem,” he remarked. “If you’re doing 50mph, I think there’s time to see you and there’s time to see anything else.”
Others, like 75-year-old Carol Walker, are more hopeful about the change. She often notices drivers accelerating quickly as they approach the junction, saying, “I can pull out that junction and as soon as you come out there’s people who have their foot down.”
For this semi-rural community of around 6,500 residents, many of whom commute to nearby towns such as Radstock, Midsomer Norton, and Frome, the A367 junction is a critical route. Peasedown itself lacks major supermarkets, with only a Tesco Express, so residents typically travel to larger stores like Sainsbury’s and Lidl in Norton.
Despite some avoiding the junction where possible, many rely on it daily due to limited alternative routes. This has led to differing opinions within the community regarding the best way to improve safety: some emphasise driver responsibility, others support the council’s proposed speed limit reduction, and many remain in favour of a roundabout.
At a council cabinet meeting on 10 September, Councillor Lucy Hodge explained the decision to halt the roundabout plans. She stated that while the roundabout was initially considered for the Somer Valley Links programme to improve bus priority, further assessment revealed it would not deliver the expected benefits and would be costly relative to alternative measures.
“The programme is therefore focusing on a package of improvements that offer better value for money,” Councillor Hodge said. These include carriageway narrowing, high-friction surfacing, improved crossing facilities, and the speed limit reduction to 40mph.
She added that these measures aim to reduce vehicle speeds, enhance safety for all road users, and support more efficient bus movement. Importantly, she noted, this does not rule out a roundabout being considered in the future if circumstances change.
A Liberal Democrat spokesperson emphasised that decisions were made based on detailed assessments and modelling, and affirmed that the proposed safety improvements would enhance safety while representing good value for money.