Scrapping roundabout plan blamed for 'gridlock'

BRIDGWATER’S MP has called for a debate in parliament over the town's “gridlocked” road network.

- DANIEL MUMBY Local Democracy Reporter

The Cross Rifles roundabout is one of the busiest junctions in the town, linking the A38 Bristol Road (from junction 23 of the M5) to the A39 Bath Road towards the “gigafactory” site, the A38 Broadway and The Clink, leading to the Bridgwater Retail Park.

The roundabout was originally earmarked for a major upgrade of Bridgwater's “northern corridor”, with the then-Conservative government allocating more than £10m from its levelling up fund in 2021.

In August 2024, the Liberal Democrat-led Somerset Council took the decision to scrap the Cross Rifles upgrade in light of rising costs, redirecting all remaining funding to upgrading the Dunball roundabout near the motorway.

Sir Ashley Fox, the Conservative MP for Bridgwater, has now called on the Government to make time in parliament for a debate on the “severe congestion” this decision had caused and how councils may be held accountable for these decisions.