Plans to reroute coastal road 'best news' for town

Civic leaders say newly announced plans to reroute a closed coastal road inland would make a "tremendous difference" to a town's fortunes.

The B3191 between Watchet and Blue Anchor in Somerset has been shut to traffic for more than three years because of erosion. The council has now revealed it wants to build a new road from Saxon Ridge to Warren Bungalow to replace it.

Somerset Council admitted the road closure had had "a huge impact" on Watchet, locals said there have been fewer visitors and a reported 70% drop in footfall through town centre businesses.

Town mayor Loretta Whetlor said the decision to build a new road was "the best news we could have had".

The B3191 was shut to vehicles in January 2023 after it was deemed unsafe because of its proximity to the edge of the eroding cliff.

It was then permanently closed through a traffic regulation order in May 2025, though pedestrians can still use the route.

Currently, the only way to access Watchet town centre by car is over a 150-year-old railway bridge.

Whetlor said life in Watchet has not been "as good as it used to be" since the closure.

"We've lost all the visitors that used to come through from the campsites, from Hoburne [holiday park in Blue Anchor] and from the beaches", she said.

John Richards, town councillor and chair of Watchet's chamber of trade, said it had been "devastating on the town centre", with businesses reporting a 70% drop in the number of people through their doors.

"We've waited a long time for something to happen", he said.

"I think [the scheme] will help the town no end."

The council said in April that it would apply to the government's Structures Fund to help pay for a new route, which is estimated to cost around £40m.

After considering six options drawn up by external consultants, it has now settled on a plan to build a 1,970ft (600m) road that will bypass the crumbling Cleeve Hill; work would also be done to stabilise the eroding cliff.

Richard Wilkins, the council's lead member for transport, said the closure has had a "huge impact" on the area, "like a rug has been pulled out from underneath them".

He said it was hoped a "considerable proportion" of the cost would be covered by the government.

He said they were just putting the bid in and then had to wait for the outcome, "but it's got every chance of success because everybody is behind this bid".

Whetlor said: "It's the best news we could have had here in Watchet... it will give us back the people that used to come through.

"It's going to make such a tremendous difference".

The Structures Fund was set up by the Department for Transport in April to provide cash to councils in England wanting to upgrade local roads.

Any money allocated from the fund has a time limit, meaning that if the bid is successful, the B3191 project would need to be completed by 2030.

Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.