The scheme to upgrade the A358 to dual carriageway between Southfields Roundabout on the A303 and the M5 at Taunton in Somerset has been paused in its current form, due to a number of what National Highways has referred to as ‘affordability challenges’.
The Preferred Route Protection remains in place while the future of the scheme is being considered by the Government as part of a wider review. National Highways has said that it is not in a positiion to confirm the future of the scheme until this process has concluded.
he A303/A358 corridor is a vital connection between the South West and London and the South East. While much of the corridor is a dual carriageway, there are still over 35 miles of single carriageway. These sections act as congestion bottlenecks, particularly in the summer months and at weekends, causing delays to road users, and they add to an increased risk of accidents.
Currently most of the A358 is a single lane and has many local roads and private accesses joining directly with it. It’s often congested and is a source of frustration for local people, and those using the road to travel longer distances. Many road users try to avoid the traffic congestion by diverting onto smaller local roads, which then increases the level of traffic in surrounding villages. To address this, NH is proposing to upgrade an 8.5 mile section of the A358 between Southfields Roundabout on the A303 and the M5 at Taunton, to a high quality dual carriageway.
In 2019 we made our preferred route announcement for the improvement scheme, confirming that we’ll be taking a modified version of the pink option forward. Click the link to find out more about the options consultations and the chosen route.
