St. Mellion Needs A Bypass Now

The A388 road between Saltash and Callington forms an important part of the Primary Route Network in south-east Cornwall. Following a series of improvements during the 1990s, much of this strategic route is now of a good standard.

However, there is a marked drop in the standard through the village of St. Mellion and this creates major problems for road users as well as residents'.
After being promised a Bypass by St. Mellion International Resort, however, they failed to deliver, residents' now feel Cornwall Council have washed its hands of St. Mellion and its residents completely.
St. Mellion Bypass has now been removed from Cornwall Councils' major Highway Scheme on its Website.

If you live in St. Mellion you will be only too familiar with the reasons why we all would greatly appreciate a Bypass.

We would summarise these as: Social and Environmental.
The main A388 road splits the village of St. Mellion in two.
In 2004 the constant traffic passing through St. Mellion each day averaged 11,700 vehicles including 620 heavy commercial vehicles.
In 2011 vehicle volumes averaged 13,896 – 15,000 along with a dramatic increase of 923 heavy goods vehicles.
These subject the village to unwanted noise, speed, vibration and air pollution.

St. Mellion Cottages are 4 cottages, built approximately 1700s which have front doors, windows and entrance pathways sited just 2 - 4 feet away from the A388 road.
The Village Cottage sits a mere 14 inches off the A388 road.

Under the present situation, the A388 road through the heart of St. Mellion village has made lots of residents' housebound; a high percentage of elderly in the village fear the heavy amounts of Cars, Bikes, Vans, Trucks & Heavy Goods Vehicles and are unable to cross the road.

Safety: Up to February 2006, 32 accidents were recorded on the A388 in and around St. Mellion, of which 14 had involved personal injury.
From March 2010 - May 2012, there have been 8 accidents throughout the village, one of these accidents was a direct hit of the wall between the cottages and the road, to which rolled the car over and it landed on its roof directly outside 3 St. Mellion Cottages.

In terms of accident severity, the road through the village itself and the Golf Club junction have the poorest record.

The main objectives for St. Mellion Bypass, therefore, are to:
Improve the village environment for St. Mellion residents' and award winning school;
Improve road safety in the village and the Golf Club junction;
To eliminate Golf Club traffic using Church Lane / Church Park as a "short cut and rat run" to St. Mellion International Resort;
To eliminate a poorly aligned sub-standard section of road thus giving a more consistent standard of road between Callington and Saltash, therefore maintaining network efficiency;
Encourage non car journeys by pedestrians and improve facilities for pedestrians, cyclists and equestrians;
Residents of St. Mellion would be able to come together as one community again, bringing the village back to becoming a village once more;
To eliminate 15,000 Cars, Bikes, Vans, Trucks & Heavy Goods Vehicles travelling right through the heart of St. Mellion village.