PLANS for a new roundabout on the A358 at Bishops Lydeard are back in the melting pot three months after work was due to start on the scheme. Somerset County Council this week confirmed that tests had shown an underpass leading from the West Somerset Railway side of the Station Road crossroads to the village would be unable to take the weight of the proposed roundabout. The scheme was due to start in February but was delayed while tests were carried out. The news was greeted with dismay at the time by West Somerset councillors who feared the hold-up could mean construction work could clash with the busy holiday season. They feared tourists would turn away from the district rather than brave long traffic queues on one of the main routes into the area. Minehead county councillor Terry Venner said: "Any work at Bishops Lydeard has a major impact on West Somerset and needs to be done out of season otherwise it will be a total nightmare for everyone." But, as yet, there is no word on when work will start or how the problems of the underpass will be overcome. There is also the prospect that the A358 roundabout work could clash with the construction of a long-awaited roundabout on the A39 at Washford Cross. In a statement, a spokesman for Somerset County Council said: "A recent structural survey has established that the current design for the roundabout would increase loading on the underpass to an unsatisfactory level. "Therefore, the county council is working with the developer and their designers to revise the plans so that the structure is not subjected to any additional loading." The Bishops Lydeard roundabout is part of a wider scheme to develop land alongside the railway for housing and leisure use. The Washford Cross roundabout, which is being funded by EDF Energy, forms part of a package of works being carried out in conjunction with plans for a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point. However, no start date has yet been given as cash for the A39 roundabout will only be released when EDF begins work in earnest on phase two of the Hinkley C project. And that is dependent on the EU giving the final go-ahead for a Government funding deal for the power station and EDF itself agreeing to bankroll the development - both widely expected to happen in the late summer or early autumn. Although EDF has not confirmed a start date for the Washford Cross roundabout, it has already drawn up plans for the scheme.