A DANGEROUS junction is set to receive major upgrades to improve its safety, courtesy of Somerset Council.

The Miner’s Arms junction, just outside Priddy, near Wells, has recorded 35 reported collisions over the past 20 years, 11 of which were deemed serious, and three of which were fatal.

In the last seven years alone, the junction has claimed two lives, in addition to a further two serious collisions and eight other less serious collisions. 

Work will be done by the Council’s contractor Octavius to realign the junction of the B3135 and B3134, where drivers regularly fail to stop, despite clear signage, with traffic often travelling at speed from all directions. 

Work is set to commences on Monday, April 29, and the scheme is expected to be complete by July.

It involves junction realignment, including a new section of road and associated landscaping; signing; lining; drainage work and a reduced speed limit.

It is anticipated that most of the work will be done using temporary traffic lights, although some short closures will be required, and advance notice of these will be given by the council at a later date.

Councillor Richard Wilkins, Somerset Council’s Executive Lead Member for Transport and Digital said: “Many people will be familiar with this difficult junction – it was identified as priority some years ago but due to the scope of the work required it has taken some time to identify and ringfence funding for this. 

“I’m really pleased to see this happening – the statistics speak for themselves, something has to be done. 

“We appreciate there may be some minor disruption while our contractor does the work, which we will keep to a minimum.

"I think we can agree it’s worth it to ensure the chance of death or serious injury on this junction is significantly reduced.” 

Chief Inspector Robert Cheeseman, Head of Roads Policing at Avon and Somerset Police said: “Our primary concern is always road safety, and we recognise that road design plays a critical role in mitigating risks on our roads.

"The proposed changes are a positive step towards reducing the potential for collisions.”