West Somerset residents have come together to demand the opening of a key coastal road as the government mulls over a £41 million bid. The B3191 Cleeve Hill between Watchet and Blue Anchor provided a valuable diversionary route for holidaymakers whenever the A39 between Minehead and Williton was congested, says the Somerset County Gazette.

The road was closed indefinitely by the-then Somerset County Council in January 2023 due to concerns about coastal erosion, leaving residents and visitors with only one route in and out of the town centre, using a 150-year-old bridge over the West Somerset Railway heritage line.

Somerset Council formally submitted a bid in early-August to the government’s £1 billion structures fund to reopen the road, either by making the existing road safer or moving the route further inland.

Local councillors and businesses have now come together to demand the government approve the bid – with transport secretary Heidi Alexander MP expected to announce the outcome before Christmas.

More than 40 Watchet residents gathered on Cleeve Hill last week to make the case for reopening the road, including several local Somerset Council representatives.

Councillor Cara Strom (whose Dunster division includes Blue Anchor) said:

“We’re here this evening to send a message to the government about how vital this road is to the whole of west Somerset, and to people from outside of the area It’s vital for businesses, for residents in their daily life, and for emergency access.

“Some people now just aren’t coming because it’s such a long way around. We have decided to stand here together to show what effect it will have on the community – we really do need this bid to be successful.”

(Picture: Mapillary)