People buying a new property at a new Highbridge housing development may have to rely on a narrow, overgrown footpath to safely reach the town centre it has been stated this week.
Countryside Partnerships is currently constructing the new Isleport Grove housing development, delivering 248 new homes along Isleport Lane.
The development, which includes 74 affordable homes, will be accessible from Isleport Lane, with drivers using the B3139 Mark Road to reach the nearby town centre.
But pedestrians wishing to avoid the existing pavements along this busy road will have to use a narrow, near-impassible footpath through the town’s industrial estate and across the railway line.
The Isleport Grove site was allocated within the Sedgemoor Local Plan, which runs until 2032, and has had outline planning permission in place since November 2019.
The site was one of several in the Highbridge and Burnham-On-Sea area which was held up by National Highways “recognised safety concerns” about the capacity of Burnham’s Edithmead roundabout, which links both settlements to junction 22 of the M5.
National Highways put a “holding position” in place on the development, ensuring that no more than 100 homes within the site could be built until a scheme to upgrade the roundabout had been agreed.
The Department for Transport (DfT) is currently considering plans to upgrade the A38 between the Edithmead roundabout and Bristol Airport, which were put forward jointly by Somerset County Council and North Somerset Council.
In February, Sedgemoor District Council agreed a £1.6m “Plan B” to upgrade the roundabout – meaning that the full development can now be delivered, along with a new Highbridge McDonald’s drive-thru and Greggs drive-thru at Oaktree Park, off the A38 Bristol Road, and new distribution hubs and warehouses on both Pillmore Lane and the Pople’s Bow site, near the Bristol Road roundabout.
The existing public rights of way begins opposite the existing homes on Isleport Lane, with no designated pavement leading from the new development to the footpath.
The route winds through the industrial estate next to Bennett Road, crossing the busy Bennett Road via some steps.
From there, the route moves between the Walrow Ponds to the south and the Lakeside homes to the north – where 110 further homes will be delivered by Boklok Ltd. after permission was granted there in December 2022.
The footpath straddles a number of rhynes and other watercourses, with the majority of the bridges being narrow concrete slaps with limited railings.
The area near Walrow Ponds and the railway line is overgrown with nettles and cow parsley, with parts of the route being mud or grass rather than Tarmac.
The railway crossing to Springfield Road, near the town’s Asda supermarket, is currently clear – but this route could potentially be closed off through the Boklok development, with pedestrians being rerouted either north onto the A38 Bristol Road or south onto the B3139 Walrow, via a separate development of 46 homes.
From the Asda supermarket, pedestrians must then stick to the existing pavements along the A38 Church Street into the town centre – close to a new development of 29 flats on the edge of the Market Street roundabout.
Efforts to improve pedestrian and cycling facilities between Highbridge town centre and Apex Park were included in a £19.3m bid to the government’s levelling up fund – but this bid (which also included projects in Cheddar and Shepton Mallet) ultimately proved unsuccessful.
Highbridge residents have expressed their concerns about the path’s safety on social media, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Brenda Bettle said: “That footpath is not safe for anyone. Even if it was cleared, I would be terrified of being attacked.”
“The local council should be laying on a free bus route, not a nature trail which is dangerous.”
Emily Redman described the situation as “an absolute joke”, adding: “Where are the schools, dentists and doctors to support all these houses going up everywhere?
“Is it even healthy to live that close to the motorway? I feel sorry for the residents who used to live on what was a nice quiet country lane.”
Darren Dancey, managing director of Countryside Partnership’s south west division, said: “We are thrilled to be opening our new show home and sales office at Isleport Grove and welcoming potential buyers to get an idea of what life at this development could look like.
“Isleport Grove and its beautiful rural and nearby seaside setting will appeal to anyone looking for a well-located new home.”
“We have already received a lot of interest in this development, so we advise anyone interested in the homes at Isleport Grove to speak with the sales team to arrange a viewing.”
