CAMPAIGNERS fighting for imp-roved safety measures at the notorious Washford Cross junction are seeking financial backing and support from West Somerset Council. Calls for a roundabout or traffic lights at the A39 crossroads - the scene of at least 17 personal injury accidents over a five year period - have been led by Watchet Town Council but have won support from at least three neighbouring parishes, including Williton. Now Cllr David Banks, a town and district councillor in Watchet, and Cllr Hugh Davies, who represents Williton on the district authority, have put forward a special motion to next week's annual West Somerset Council meeting. The pair are claiming that the district council's decision a couple of years ago to pledge £400,000 towards a new classroom at the West Somerset Community College in Minehead set a precedent for assisting other authorities in matters affecting the district. And they want the district council to offer grant aid to Somerset County Council's highways department to help fund a roundabout or traffic lights. Cllr Davies said the request was being made in light of the widespread public concern about the safety of the junction. "We hope the proposal will meet with the approval of the council to allow the eradication of this traffic blackspot from our local road network," he said . Cllr Banks, who told fellow members of Watchet Town Council about the motion at their monthly meeting on Monday, said it was aimed at highlighting the concerns of everyone who used the road. "Our reasoning is that if the district council can do that for education, why can't they do it for highways and contribute to a roundabout or traffic lights at this crossroads?" Town council chairman Cllr Dave Westcott said he would continue to push for the much needed improvements. Local people concerned about safety are being urged to exert more public pressure on highways chiefs. County council officers and the relevant portfolio holders have already refused to attend a public meeting on the issue, insisting that the effectiveness of a package of measures installed last November was being monitored. These included the installation of an illuminated bollard, new signing and anti-skid and other road markings, aimed at highlighting the approaches to the junction. Campaigners have been warned that the likely cost of installing a roundabout would be around £500,000.
