New safety gates will be installed across a key Somerset coast road ahead of a major coastal defence scheme being put in place.

The B3191 connects the town of Watchet to the small village of Blue Anchor, providing a key alternative route for residents and tourists when the A39 between Minehead and Williton is congested or closed.

Somerset County Council will be closing the B3191 at Cleeve Hill (the Watchet end) for five days at the beginning of September to install safety gates and new signs to alert motorists in the event of possible cliff falls or other dramatic coastal erosion.

This comes ahead of a £3.8M scheme from Somerset West and Taunton Council to prevent the Blue Anchor end of the road and the nearby properties (including the Anchor’s Drop pub and the neighbouring static caravans) from falling into the sea.

Currently, the cliff monitoring system detects movement of the cliff and sends out messages to activate signage and the county council’s highways teams carry out a closure.

Unfortunately, these signs are often moved by drivers to enable vehicles to pass through, which can be extremely dangerous.

The new Watchet scheme is based on the flood gates which were installed at key locations on the Somerset Levels and Moors after the catastrophic floods of 2012 and 2013/14, in order to prevent motorists from becoming stranded on low-lying roads.

The gates will be closed and locked if the existing alarm system is triggered, with motorists being diverted back to the A39.

A diversion inland will also be in place for users of the England Coast Path, which runs from Brean to Minehead via Watchet and Blue Anchor.

In addition, there will also be two advanced signs at the Blue Anchor end to warn oncoming traffic of the closure and one advanced sign on the Watchet side.

Site investigations will then be carried out and the road reopened as quickly as possible.

Councillor Mike Rigby, portfolio holder for transport and digital, said: “Cleeve Hill is a complex site and requires the utmost care when investigating potential ground movement and reopening.

“Ensuring safety for our road users is always paramount and this new system will provide an additional layer of safety to Cleeve Hill.”

Long-term solutions to secure the road at Cleeve Hill have been discussed for the last few years, with a county council report identifying a range of options – including a new bypass through the former Wansborough paper mill site and a £1bn tidal lagoon with a road on top of it.

Revised plans to divert the road inland as part of a new housing development of 136 homes are expected to be debated by the district council’s planning committee in the next few months.

Work on the Watchet gates will begin on Monday, September 5 and is expected to last for five days, with the B3191 being closed between 8am and 5pm each day.

Once this is completed, the district council can begin its scheme to shore up the Blue Anchor coastline using rock armour, which will be carried out in stages over the winter.

Councillor Andrew Sully, portfolio holder for environmental services, told the full council in early-July: “Delivery dates have yet to be confirmed, but it is anticipated that the rock will be placed in late-autumn 2022, with drainage works taking place simultaneously to seek to stabilise the cliff above the armour.

“The scheme is designed to protect the B3191 in situ.”