'Lethal' and a 'recipe for disaster'- A36 road closure sees lorries 'rat-run' on country lanes

A lorry tries to squeeze past a coach on a narrow country lane due to the part closure of the A36.

Residents living near the A36 are warning its temporary closure has become "an accident waiting to happen".

Lorries and coaches have been filmed getting stuck on country lanes around Somerset, every day since a small section of the A-road near Bath was shut on 12 August.

Residents in Limpley Stoke had warned the plans were ill-thought out and would lead to vehicles "rat-running" through villages.

But National Highways said the repairs needed to be urgently undertaken due to crumbling foundations, meaning major structural re-enforcement and a new drainage system.

This led to the A36 Warminster Road fully closing between Limpley Stoke and Monkton Combe - and it's not due to reopen until spring 2025.

National Highways has said safety is its number one priority.

On the first day of the closure, local people said they felt both anger and vindication - spotting multiple heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) and coaches ditching the lengthy, official diversions and instead getting stuck down narrow country lanes.

The official diversions as set out by National Highways - but local people drivers are finding their own shorter, and less safe, routes.

The area's MP and the headteacher of the local school met on Wednesday 14 August to discuss the scheme - amid fears that having large vehicles drive through inadequate country lanes is simply an "accident waiting to happen".

Ruth Poole, headteacher at Freshford Church School, said she is worried about the safety of children when they return to school in September.

"We are a rural school and we don't have good safe walking routes to school to start and then when you add in the rat-running it's actually lethal," she said.

Ruth added: "There's certainly an accident waiting to happen. When cars are parked in order for people to drop their children off at school and then you've got cars coming both ways to avoid the A36 closure, there will be no manoeuvring."

An HGV blocking a road having not followed the official diversion, on the first day of the A36 road closure.

Anna Sabine, the Liberal Democrat MP for Frome & East Somerset said: "I met with the headteacher of the school this morning and I can exactly see why she's worried.

"She's got lots of children coming to and from and there's lots of people rat-running, they're quite often going faster. We've seen some angry incidents already in the villages and I just think that's a recipe for disaster."

Anna added that she was told National Highways promised to provide traffic marshals to implement the scheme, but "no one has seen any traffic marshals yet".

A lorry causes a traffic jam by blocking traffic from travelling in the opposite direction on a country lane.

"I don't feel like safety is being taken seriously," she added.

"This road closure has only been in place for three days and we're already seeing significant problems and the school haven't come back yet so I think we have a massive problem on our hands that needs to be addressed.

"We've got Google maps sending people through these villages. It's not acceptable and apparently National Highways aren't taking any responsibility, so this has to change particularly before the schools start in September."

A lorry photographed driving along a country lane, rather than following the official diversion.

In response, Hugh Campbell, Senior Project Manager for National Highways, said: “Safety is our number one priority and we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause but need to fix the root of the problem to ensure it doesn’t happen again and that motorists and pedestrians remain safe at all times.

“We understand that road closures are frustrating, but by fully closing the road, we can get this scheme done safely and quickly, causing less disruption overall.

"Once it's all complete, these improvements will benefit road users and the local community for many years to come.”