A persistent sinkhole on Station Road (B3152) in Castle Cary is finally being repaired after nearly five years of ongoing disruption. The issue first emerged in July 2021 near the site where Persimmon Homes Severn Valley started building a new development comprising 162 homes, commercial spaces, and a primary school.
Somerset Council initially installed temporary traffic lights in July 2024 to protect pedestrians and drivers on the affected stretch between Almsford Close and Victoria Gardens. However, these measures have only offered a short-term fix, with local residents marking the fourth anniversary of the sinkhole with balloons and posters in 2025.
In November 2025, Councillor Henry Hobhouse, representing Castle Cary and nearby villages, revealed that Somerset Council had spent more maintaining traffic management than the estimated cost of repairing the sinkhole itself. Following sustained pressure, the council announced that full repair work finally commenced on February 9, 2026.
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The initial phase involves investigatory and preparation works under a road closure active on weekdays from 8 am to 5 pm, with the road reopening outside these hours. During this time, bus access will be suspended, and signed diversions put in place. Pedestrian access will be maintained at all times, with assurances that local schoolchildren can be safely escorted past the roadworks.
After this phase, temporary traffic lights will return until the main repairs begin in March. Concurrently, the nearby B3153 Clanville will be closed for resurfacing over three weekends in February, with separate closures planned not to overlap with Station Road work.
Councillor Hobhouse has called for the creation of an emergency highway repair fund to prevent prolonged delays and excessive costs in future incidents. Drawing from his 20 years on the railways, he emphasized the importance of rapid response funding for hazardous situations: “I would like to ask why we, as a highway authority, don’t have some sort of emergency fund to deal with problems immediately when they occur, rather than letting them continue for basically four years.”
As repairs move forward, residents anticipate relief from the sinkhole’s long-standing disruption to this vital Castle Cary route.