A MAIN route out of Keynsham has reopened to traffic after major reconstruction and resurfacing.
The 24-hour-a-day closure ended on June 21, two weeks ahead of schedule.
Bath & North East Somerset Council revealed on its Facebook page: “Highway reconstruction and resurfacing works in Charlton Road are now complete. The road has been reopened.”
The closure had been causing chaos as drivers coming from Whitchurch ignored the route advised by diversion signs and tried to cut through the village of Compton Dando instead.
A Compton Dando resident told the Voice that traffic approaching Woollard had then headed down Slate Lane and Peppershells Lane – a twisting, single-lane route with few passing places – and had caused gridlock.
One of the vehicles that got into difficulties trying to drive through the village was a scaffolding lorry.
Alison ter Harr said: “We shouldn’t be having this through a very quiet rural village. It’s totally out of order.”
She said that residents had been struggling to travel to or from work, with some abandoning their cars and walking the rest of the way home. Parents trying to drop their children off by car for school buses stopping in the village had also been unable to do so.
B&NES Council said it apologised for the disruption caused by the work.
A spokesperson said diversion routes had been clearly signed and that motorists were encouraged to follow them to minimise pressure on other routes.
They said the council monitored all road closures and had noted that subsequent days of the works saw significantly less traffic using adjacent lanes.
Pictured, narrow lanes leading to Compton Dando became gridlocked as drivers ignored diversion signs set up during the closure of Charlton Road
Charlton Road opens after repairs finish early
