Work begins on roadworks to deliver Celebration Mile in Bridgwater

The Celebration Mile will eventually run from Bridgwater railway station to the Northgate Docks, providing an attractive and safe walking and cycling route for both current residents and visitors to the town.

A total of £9m was allocated within the Bridgwater town deal to deliver three key sections of the route, each of which secured planning permission from Sedgemoor District Council in mid-2022.

The executive committee of Somerset Council (which replaced the district council in April 2023) voted in November 2023 to proceed with the project, tentatively appointing Taylor Woodrow SWH Contracting (which is based in Watford) to undertake the work.

Several sections of the Celebration Mile are already in place, such as the route from Northgate Docks to Angel Crescent. (Image: Daniel Mumby)

The delivery of these three key sections officially began on Monday morning (August 5) and will be carried out in numerous phases to limit the impact on residents, businesses and motorists.

The Celebration Mile is intended to “re-energise the centre of Bridgwater” by improving footfall and encouraging visitors to spend more time in the town centre.

The funding for the project comes from within the Bridgwater town deal and must be spent on walking and cycling improvements within the town centre by March 2026 – or else the money will be returned to the Treasury.

Several sections are already in place, with the route from Northgate Docks to Angel Crescent being delivered as part of the Northgate Yard regeneration scheme, and the crucial A38 Broadway junction being completed in July 2023.

Long read: How the Celebration Mile will change Bridgwater forever 

The route will include coordinated high-quality public realm materials, street furniture, shared surfaces, paving, lighting, street trees, interpretative material, public art, and improved way-finding.

Work has begun on the first town deal section, comprising Eastover, East Quay, New Road and Salmon Parade, and will last up to 14 months.

This phase will be staggered in eight phases to reduce the impact on residents, businesses and motorists seeking to reach the town centre.

This will include the implementation of new one-way systems along East Quay, Eastover and Salmon Parade.

How the Salmon Parade section of the route could look. (Image: Macgregor Smith Landscape Architects)

The improvements to Angel Crescent will begin on November 4 and will be carried out over five phases, with work scheduled to finish on May 28, 2025.

Work on the final section, around Clare Street, will begin on February 17, 2025 and be staggered across three phases, with the roadworks lasting up to seven months.

Councillor Ros Wyke, portfolio holder for economic development, planning and assets, said: “I’m delighted to have Taylor Woodrow on board and look forward to the start of construction just a few weeks away. This is a fantastic project for Bridgwater.

“It’s a key part of the town deal regeneration vision for the town and we are hoping that by providing a single, safe and thriving active travel route from the railway station to the docks, it will transform the way people get around, easing congestion, improving air quality and bringing more people into Bridgwater to visit and shop.”

Further details of traffic management measures during construction, including any road closures, will be communicated with the public in the coming months.

Taylor Woodrow is also currently working on public realm improvements in Yeovil town centre, delivering a new amphitheatre and several cycling ‘missing links’ as part of the council’s long-running Yeovil Refresh programme.

Toby Lander, operations manager for Taylor Woodrow, said: “We are pleased to be continuing our partnership with Somerset Council on this exciting regeneration project in the heart of Bridgwater, and are looking forward to delivering an active travel route throughout the town, while making the areas both safe and attractive to its users.

“As always, we will be working closely with all impacted local businesses and residents.”

On top of the £9m for the Celebration Mile, a further £5.2m within the Bridgwater town deal has been allocated on regenerating the Northgate Docks.

A total of £4.2m will be spent on refurbishing the grade two listed docks to provide moorings and open up the space for leisure activities, while the remaining £1m will go towards walking and cycling improvements around the site – including a new cycle bridge near the lock gates and better links to the tow-path along the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal.

The former community hospital on Salmon Parade, which closed in 2014, will also be regenerated within the next two 18 months, with the building being turned into a health and social care academy.

The regeneration project – which has received £19.7m from the government’s levelling up fund – will also see a satellite facility created on Stephenson Road in Minehead, within the town’s new police station.

Construction work on the new academy will be staggered around the delivery of the Celebration Mile to prevent Salmon Parade from being dug up twice in the space of a year.

The crucial final section, along the A372 St. John’s Street, has no funding in place for upgrades at present and presents numerous challenges for delivering more space for pedestrians and cyclists.

Campaigners have called on the council to better promote the railway station, encouraging more people to use public transport and thereby potentially unlocking funding for the final improvements – including fixing the current bus interchange in front of the station.

For information on all the Bridgwater Town Deal projects, visit www.bridgwatertowndeal.co.uk/projects.