M5 roundabout traffic upgrade could cost up to £6.4m

Somerset Council has applied for funding from the Department for Transport

Upgrades to a congested roundabout could cost up to £6.4m, according to a council.

Work on the Edithmead roundabout, which links junction 22 of the M5 to the A38 Bristol Road, is set to begin in 2025.

The roundabout was identified in 2021 as one of nine improvement schemes which could ease traffic between Highbridge and Bristol Airport.

Somerset Council has applied for funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) for the scheme.

The Edithmead upgrade would mean the existing roundabout is turned into a throughabout, with a new priority lane running through the centre to take traffic from the motorway towards the northbound A38.

Upgrades could see the existing roundabout turned into a throughabout

If funding is secured, the council said work would not start until the planned upgrade to the Dunball roundabout, which is due to start in the summer near junction 23, is completed.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the nine A38 schemes were thrown into question in early 2023 as a result of high inflation in the construction industry.

However, following the cancellation of the High Speed 2 link between Birmingham and Manchester, the DfT announced some funding from the cancelled project could be reallocated to the A38 schemes pending a successful final bid.

If the funding is not granted, Sedgemoor District Council approved a £1.6m Plan B scheme for the roundabout before the council was abolished in February 2023.

The council is currently in the early stages of procuring a contractor for the Dunball and Edithmead schemes

Funded entirely by contributions from housing developers, the alternative scheme would see the roundabout "partially signalised", without the new priority line being installed.

Somerset Council did not comment on whether this Plan B could or would still be implemented if the DfT bid was not successful.

The council is currently in the early stages of procuring a contractor for both the Dunball and Edithmead schemes, and said including both schemes in a single bid could help to cut costs.