Shepton and Wells route gaps targeted in £730,000 plan

By Laura Linham 2nd Apr 2026

Local News by Laura Linham 2nd Apr 2026

Shepton Mallet and Wells are back in the spotlight after Somerset Council earmarked up to £730,000 to help complete missing walking and cycling links across rural Somerset over the next two years.

And for campaigners, one gap matters more than most: the long-awaited Strawberry Line connection between Shepton Mallet and Wells.

The funding will be focused on projects linked to the Strawberry Line and the wider Somerset Circle, a proposed 76-mile traffic-free route linking the north Somerset coast, Bristol, Bath, the Mendip Hills and Shepton Mallet. More than two-thirds of that route is already in place, but the missing sections around Shepton Mallet and Wells remain some of the most important.

That is why this latest cash injection will be watched closely in both towns. A completed route between Shepton Mallet and Wells would not just be a win for leisure users. Supporters say it could improve everyday links between communities, create safer options for walkers and cyclists and strengthen the area's appeal to visitors.

Somerset Council ratified its local transport plan in mid-March, committing to walking and cycling improvements over the next five years. But officers warned there was "almost no money" for rural schemes under the usual funding rules, making this new package a major boost for the former Mendip area.

The money will go to registered charity Greenways and Cycle Routes, which has been working since 2016 to deliver rural active travel links. The organisation has already helped deliver the Windsor Hill Greenway north of Shepton Mallet, while separate concern has been growing over delays on other local sections, as highlighted in Shepton Strawberry Line hopes hit by cash blow.

Lucy Bath, Somerset Council's lead officer for infrastructure and transport planning, said the Strawberry Line and Somerset Circle are key ambitions in the authority's transport plan. She said that without this funding it would be "extremely difficult and expensive" to deliver more improvements in rural areas.

Council officers said backing Greenways and Cycle Routes would give Somerset more flexibility to unlock schemes that might otherwise stall. They also said the work would improve local connectivity, support active travel and leisure use, and help local businesses both during construction and by drawing more people into the area.

Of the £730,000 being allocated, £472,070 will come from Department for Transport grants. The remaining £257,930 will be repurposed from the scrapped A39 bypass between Ashcott and Walton.

Mick Fletcher, chairman of the Strawberry Line Society, said the announcement was "very exciting" and should allow a "big step forward". He said campaigners could not yet be too precise about the final route of the missing sections until landowners had signed agreements, but made clear the gaps include Shepton Mallet to Wells, Wells to Easton, Westbury-sub-Mendip to Rodney Stoke, and Draycott to Cheddar.

That puts Shepton Mallet and Wells right at the centre of the next phase. Around Shepton, campaigners are especially keen to improve links into the Somerset Circle. Near Wells, attention remains fixed on Stump Cross Bridge under Ridge Road, where the Strawberry Line Society wants an arch opened so walkers and cyclists can pass safely beneath the busy road.

Fletcher said progress on that project had started to move forward more sensibly after criticism earlier this year. It comes as Wells is also preparing for major transport change elsewhere, with Wells crash blackspot to get £4m roundabout upgrade near Whitnell Corner.

The funding announcement also lands just weeks before the inaugural Somerset Circle Discovery Ride on Friday, 18 April and Saturday, 19 April 2026. Organisers said riders will head through Shepton Mallet before passing along the Strawberry Line through Wells, using the event to raise the route's profile and build support for the unfinished stretches.

For residents in Shepton Mallet and Wells, the message is clear: after years of frustration, delay and funding worries, the missing link between the two towns is back in play — and this time there is real money behind it.