Politicians in Peasedown St John have heavily criticised a Council report which has concluded that no action should be taken to improve safety measures at the notorious A367/Bath Road junction.

For over a year, residents and community leaders have awaited the results of a £30,000 feasibility study which was to assess what further improvements could be made to ensure drivers and pedestrians felt safe when entering and exiting the southern end of the village.

Cllr Karen Walker (Independent, Peasedown), who has long called for a roundabout to be built here, said: “For over a decade, the community of Peasedown St John has called for further safety measures to be implemented at the Bath Road/A367 junction at the southern end of the village. Now, after ten years of waiting, to receive an answer from B&NES Council that no action will be taken, is hugely disappointing. This isn’t the result, or the closure on this issue, that any of us wanted.”

The Council report, published last week, was compiled after years of pressure on the local authority, from current and former councillors, the local Residents’ Association and Parish Council.

Despite acknowledging that a roundabout would ‘perform up to 33% better’ and ‘reduce accidents by 30%’, the Highways Department believes the cost of building such a structure and the disruption to traffic during construction far outweigh the traffic and safety necessities.

The report estimates roundabout construction costs to be around £582,000. It also states that traffic lights would cause delays, and vehicles travelling at high speeds would cause traffic to jump lights and increase road traffic accidents.

Cllr Sarah Bevan (Independent, Peasedown) added: “The community will feel an immense sense of disappointment with the report’s conclusions. Despite two petitions, a public meeting, questions to Cabinet, community campaigns, a decade of lobbying and a Cabinet Member visit to Peasedown St John, the Tory Leadership at B&NES could never have misunderstood more the mood of local residents as much as it has with this report.

“With numerous accidents at this junction, and 4,000 vehicle movements per day, this study was to be Peasedown’s opportunity to see some large scale investment in our community, as other areas have been party to.”

The Council report concludes that the ‘junction performs satisfactorily’ and the ‘existing ghost island junction is to be retained’. It estimates that around 15,000 vehicles use the A367 daily and of the £582,000 needed, £52,872 would be in fees. There were four accidents reported in the last five years at this junction, two of which were serious.

A Council spokesperson commented: “The Council conducted a professional study of the junction, in response to the ward members’ requests. The report concluded that this site has a relatively low rate of accidents, no more than the national average for this type of junction – and traffic flow performs reasonably well at peak times. Therefore, the Council could not justify prioritising £582,000 on this particular scheme.”