WILTSHIRE councillors have reassured Westbury that it has not been forgotten and that they are ‘very keen’ to see a new A350 bypass for the town.
But it will be at least five years before plans are pushed forward.
According to the leader of Wiltshire Council, cllr Philip Whitehead, the council is “now in a position to do something about” a bypass for Westbury, and that the community can “look forward” to an A350 bypass in the future.
However, the estimated timeline for a Westbury bypass remains the same, with a bid for government funding five years away.
As reported in February this year by White Horse News, Wiltshire Council intends to bid for funds to make ‘improvements’ to the A350 in Westbury in the next round of government funding, which won’t begin until 2025.
“We are aware of Westbury’s current situation and want to improve that too,” said cllr Whitehead at a Wiltshire Council cabinet meeting earlier this month, where it was unanimously agreed to hold a public consultation about a A350 bypass for Melksham.
Critics have questioned why a Westbury bypass is so far behind Melksham when Melksham already has a bypass.
Back in the early 1990s, a Westbury bypass was Wiltshire Council’s stated number one road project in the county. But it has consistently been overlooked since then.
“I do understand that Westbury will be looking forward to a bypass in the future as well, and that we will do the same process that we have done for Melksham in terms of creating some basic information, so that when the government releases the opportunity to bid for routes, we can bid for a bypass around Westbury,” continued cllr Whitehead.
“I appreciate that at the moment, we are doing bypasses and improving the A350 all the way down, and the next major town on that route is Westbury. And officers have already started the preparation so that we know what sort of bid we could bid for in terms of satisfying Westbury.”
Wanting to reassure Westbury that it had not been forgotten, Wiltshire Council cabinet member for highways, transport and waste, cllr Bridget Wayman, explained that she “fully appreciates” the problems that Westbury has, and that she is “very keen” to see a bypass around the town.
“The Department for Transport has funded Highways England to carry out a study of the north/south route from the south coast up to the M4, so they will obviously be including Westbury in part of that study,” explained cllr Wayman at the meeting.
“The north/south study will look at Westbury and should address the problem. And even if not, we will look at the next opportunity in the major road network and large local major schemes,” added cllr Wayman later in the meeting.
The news was welcomed by Wiltshire cllr Gordon King, who is also a Westbury town councillor.
Cllr King said, “I look forward to welcoming such a consultation around Westbury. And I remind everybody that Westbury needs and indeed looks forward to that type of connection to the north, to the motorway, and the wider markets, as does everybody else.”
Cllr King also explained at the meeting that the upgrade of the A350 was vital for the growth of the county’s economy.
Cllr Ian Thorn added, “There’s no doubt that the A350 is an absolutely critical artery that runs north/south through the county and therefore the improvements to the A350 – including the Melksham bypass and, as you’ve suggested, potentially and vitally a bypass for Westbury – is absolutely critical for the economic vitality of the county and should be supported in principle.”
