In September 2021, Mendip District Councillors approved a plan to apply to the Government for permission to pedestrianise Berkley Lane and Dark Lane in a bid to reduce flytipping to the north of Frome, after an initial local public consultation backed the idea (see here).  

An Application for a Pedestrianisation Order at Berkley Lane and Dark Lane under section 249 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, was submitted by Mendip District Council to the Department for Transport on 17^th December 2021. Mendip waits to hear when the application will be progressed, as the Department’s processing time is longer than usual due to the continuing impact of Covid-19. When the application is accepted, the next steps include publication of notices and an official public consultation period.

The proposal for a Pedestrianisation Order under section 249 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, retaining access for walkers, cyclists and horse riders but banning motor vehicles, was my initial idea and was agreed in detail during months of meetings and discussions between Mendip District, Somerset County and Berkley Parish and Frome Town Councils, the Environment Agency, police and fire service, in a multi agency cross-party working group which considered a large number of measures and worked to find an agreeable long term and sustainable solution to the problem of flytipping in this area. It was also discussed and agreed with other local councillors (including Shannon Brooke, Mendip District councillor for Beckington & Selwood ward). This is after the previous road closure under a Public Space Protection Order was not renewed in February 2021 due to a persistent legal challenge. Somerset County Council would then support Mendip’s application through a Traffic Regulation Order.