Integrating with the Railway and More | |
A new road from the west, alongside the rail tracks, would be ideally placed for freight interface and HGVs. The future Road-Rail Freight Terminal at Westbury Station sidings, as shown on Wiltshire Council's drawings, on land safeguarded by Wiltshire Council, is to be on the western side of Westbury railway station. The suggested western way to the station etc and past Westbury would interconnect with the A36 through a roundabout. There would also be a roundabout for the railway interface, for the industrial/trading estates (which are in the same area) and for an A350 interconnection. The eastern bypass scheme once promoted by Wiltshire Council required four roundabouts and also the realignment of two adjacent secondary B-roads. It would be advantageous to dual the A36 trunk road for the short distance to the existing dualled section, for interface with the A361, Frome bypass, etc. Further A36 upgrading could obviously be undertaken. As any A36 improvement would be of general benefit, the cost of this is really a separate consideration. It is also reasonably obvious that a roundabout which combines the interconnection of a new western way to Westbury station, the B3099 junction (which is presently hazardous) and the Frome Market access road (ie: all in the Standerwick area) with the A36 would be of overall advantage. It can easily be appreciated that such upgrades would significantly improve general safety on the A36. The hazardous three lanes on Black Dog Hill could be resolved, by such a joined-up approach, because the suggested moderate additional northbound dualling could provide compensatory HGV overtaking opportunity so as to facilitate a full restriction against northbound (downhill) risky overtaking on Black Dog Hill.
As on the diagram, the western way in to Westbury railway station could involve a bridge over the tracks. There is lots of spare or redundant or unsuitably-used land in the vicinity of Westbury Station, within the existing railway complex or adjacent to it, that makes the location ideal to be an integrated transport hub, for freight interchange and for sufficient car parking for passengers coming to this rail centre for London. Clearly a western access road (as described) to the railway station and freight sidings could resolve it all. These are just simple obvious outline suggestions. Wiltshire Council wasted more than five million pounds (of Wilts council tax money) in designing, amending and promoting its eastern Westbury bypass project. It is impossible for campaigners to go into equivalent levels of survey/design detail for an alternative scheme. This outline is mostly based on carefully studying Wiltshire Council information, inclusive of the undeveloped Far Western route alternative plan, observing Wilts Council's contrived conclusions and working from there. |
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