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Following extensive design work, two public consultations and lots of hard work, the planning application was submitted at the end of July.
We are now in a 16-week statutory process where we, as the Local Planning Authority, undertake a further statutory consultation before deciding whether permission can be granted for the scheme.
Access the planning application on our website and have your say before the consultation period ends on Saturday 27 August.
The bypass, which is funded through Homes England’s Housing Infrastructure Fund, would remove traffic congestion from a pinch point along a key route between the A38 and Weston-super-Mare, while also delivering infrastructure to enable future housing development (subject to the new Local Plan).
As well as alleviating congestion and cutting journey times, the proposals also include new routes for walkers, cyclists and horse riders, and protection of local habitats for species of otters, badger and bats, and biodiversity net gain of up to 40 per cent.
Resident feedback has played a vital role in refining the design and we welcome more comments during this further period of consultation.
The application includes all relevant supporting documentation, alongside assessments of traffic flows, ecology and local wildlife, noise assessments and more.
Extra funding secured to deliver Portishead rail
Following our commitment of an additional £10m to help reopen the Portishead to Bristol rail line, a further £10m has been committed by the West of England Combined Authority and £15.5m by the Department for Transport (DfT).
Portishead rail is one of our key schemes with the potential to transform the area through greener travel, access to jobs and sustainable economic growth, bringing 50,000 people back into the direct catchment area of a rail station for the first time in over 60 years.
The additional funding remains subject to DfT approval of the scheme’s full business case and its Development Consent Order.