Town council divided over A350 bypass route

Melksham Town Council is divided over its opinion over the proposed route for the A350 bypass. 

A straw poll of the 15 councillors asking them if they agreed that Wiltshire Council should continue exploring and developing plans for the proposed route – to the east of Melksham, around Bowerhill – returned an almost 50/50 split – with eight councillors in favour, and seven against. 

The straw poll was conducted at a meeting of the town council last week, when councillors discussed their response to Wiltshire Council’s consultation. 

Those councillors against the proposed bypass route, raised concerns about the environmental impact of the bypass, and questioned the need for a bypass in a “post-Covid world”, which has seen a change in how people travel. 

Cllr Tom Price, who described the proposed route as a “scar on the countryside”, called for more evidence to support the need for a bypass, and urged the town council to wait for the environmental impact report – which would be available if the bypass plans got to the planning application stage – before supporting it. 

And cllr Sue Mortimer highlighted that the recent announcement last month by the Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapp, – that the government’s cycling and walking budget has been increased to £338 million, as part of their commitment “to build back greener from pandemic” – has not been taken into account. 

Cllr Mortimer explained that in light of the Secretary of State for Transport’s announcement, Wiltshire Council should be looking for ways to encourage more walking and cycling, instead of building a bypass. 

However, mayor cllr Jon Hubbard, acknowledged that the Secretary of State for Transport would have the final say on the bypass, and could therefore “shut it down” if he felt it didn’t sit with the government’s ambition to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.  

Councillors in favour of proceeding with exploring plans for the ‘10c’ route highlighted a number of pros for the town, if it were to go ahead. These included reducing traffic congestion to the north of the town by McDonald’s; diverting HGV traffic away from the town, reducing noise and air pollution; the possibility for town centre improvements for both business and leisure; and safer access for students walking to Melksham Oak School. 

In their response to the recent Wiltshire Council consultation, the town council also proposed a number of ideas for mitigation and community benefits, if the bypass were to go ahead. 

Ideas included bunds along the entire length of the proposed route to screen the bypass from adjacent land and reduce noise pollution; the use of ‘green bridges’ for pedestrian crossings; wildlife crossings; tree and hedgerow planting along the entire length of the bypass to improve biodiversity; and the provision of a “segmented” cycleway/ footpath along the entire length of the bypass. 

Wiltshire Council’s non-statutory engagement and consultation exercise about the A350 bypass project ended earlier this month. 

 To find out more about the proposed scheme, visit the website: www.wiltshire. gov.uk/article/3146/A350-Melksham-bypass