Lows and highs of 10-week gas work road closure

The closure of a busy road in north Devon for 10 weeks is damaging trade for a newly-refurbished pub and costing some workers hundreds of pounds through much longer journeys.

The through road between Bickington and Fremington near Barnstaple is closed until 23 August while a £1.8m scheme to upgrade gas pipes is carried out.

The new landlords of the Old Barn in Bickington took over the pub earlier in the year and invested tens of thousands of pounds in the venue only weeks before finding out about the road closure.

Wales and West Utilities says the work is essential to keep supplies going and some people in the village say they are making the most of the situation.

Dawn Payne and Bailey Dellaway took over the Old Barn pub in Bickington earlier in 2026.

Payne said it was a "very worrying time" as the pub had been "at full capacity" at weekends since opening in February but trade had now slumped.

The B3233 road which is closed is usually very busy, particularly in the summer with people travelling out from Barnstaple to the beach.

Payne said: "It's heart-breaking - we've fully refurbished the pub and is it worth it?"

The pub is open as usual and hoping for a boost from showing World Cup games on a series of big screens inside.

Adam Wheeler calculates he has had to travel an extra 22 miles (35km) a day to get between his home in Fremington and his job at a campsite in Croyde by taking a detour along the A39.

He said: "The trouble is that the dual carriageway which holds all the other traffic is just as busy so now you've got all this traffic going that way as well."

The A39 dual carriageway which goes from north Devon down the Atlantic coast is notoriously busy in the summer months and Wheeler said: "It really worries me to think - am I going to be able to get to work at all?"

The Tarka Trail is a highly popular walking and cycling route between Barnstaple and Bideford, and further afield, which was once a railway line.

Tim Steer from campaign group Rail Future said in the long term the line should be reinstated to provide another way of travelling between the towns.

Some residents in Bickington said they understood the need for the works and were trying to see the positives.

Barbara Arnold was walking back from her weekly line-dancing class rather than her normal drive home.

She said: "I just think you've got to do the best you can with what you've got.

"If you want someone to moan and groan you've picked the wrong lady because I think it's got to happen and we've just got to make the most of it."

Jeff Tookey, who was out walking his dog Murfi, said he realised the work was disruptive but necessary.

He said: "Wales and West said if they didn't close the road it would be at least 18 months of traffic control which is not good for the area."

Frank Biederman, Liberal Democrat councillor for Fremington Rural on Devon County Council, said he and colleagues and the Age Concern charity had set up a network of volunteers to help elderly and vulnerable residents.

He said: "We're offering lifts or if people need prescriptions we'll find volunteers or go ourselves.

"As always with our community there's been a fantastic response by people willing to help."

Biederman said the Roundswell bus lane in Barnstaple was being temporarily suspended to ease traffic flow but the controversial Old Torrington Road bus gate would remain closed to general traffic to protect emergency service access.

Wales and West said it was replacing more than 9km (5.5 miles) of gas pipes to upgrade "critical energy infrastructure".

Roxanne Whittaker, manager of the programme for the utilities firm, said: "Once we've completed this intensive phase of work, we'll leave behind an upgraded network that meets today's energy needs, and is ready to transport greener gases in the future.

"By completing this work now, barring any emergency repairs, we can avoid returning to the area and causing further disruption to the local community for decades."

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