'Relief' for residents as roadworks finish early

The M5 junction 26 and the A38 link road were closed for 12 weeks

People in part of Somerset have expressed their "relief" as a road closure expecting to last 14 weeks has been reopened two weeks earlier than planned.

The M5 at junction 26 for Wellington and the A38 link road was closed on 16 June for a £5.7m council refurbishment project.

Many residents and businesses in the area had expressed concerns over the impact of the lengthy, full-time closure.

"There was quite a bit of concern as you can imagine, you know, closing a motorway junction for a couple of months is not a good thing and it's not an easy thing to do, but as it's turned out, I think it's been pretty good," Somerset Councillor Mike Rigby said.

The contractor, Heidelberg Materials, used a technique known as rubbilization to break up 7,300 tonnes of concrete with heavy machinery.

The material was then recycled to use for the new carriageway.

A new drainage system was also installed to reduce the risk of flooding.

Gideon Sumption said local businesses "suffered" throughout the three-month road closure

Gideon Sumption, who runs the Foxmoor Business Park in Wellington, said the early completion was a "relief".

"Our 72 businesses here have suffered over the last three months in order to save the council money, but I'm delighted the project has finished early which is a great achievement," he said.

He added that the council should have organised a part-time closure of the road to prevent businesses losing money.

Mr Rigby said there was no way to avoid the full-time closure and the decision to work that way was made due to the extent of the project and the safety measures required.

Despite this, he said he was "really pleased" with the outcome and the fact that the project was delivered "exactly on budget".