B3153 (Somerset)
| B3153 | ||||||||||
| Location Map ( geo) | ||||||||||
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| From: | Ansford (ST630333) | |||||||||
| To: | Langport (ST426276) | |||||||||
| Via: | Lydford-on-Fosse, Somerton | |||||||||
| Distance: | 14 miles (22.5 km) | |||||||||
| Meets: | A371, A37, B3151, B3165, A372 | |||||||||
| Old route now: | A378 | |||||||||
| Highway Authorities | ||||||||||
| Traditional Counties | ||||||||||
| Route outline (key) | ||||||||||
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For the new B3153 along Wyke Road in Weymouth, see B3153 (Weymouth).
Route
The B3153 is a medium-length B-road in east Somerset.
The road starts between two railway lines on the A371 near Castle Cary Station in Ansford and heads west. The first left is signed for Torbay Road Industrial Estate and used locally as a short cut to and from Castle Cary town centre. We then pass under the railway line to Taunton and pass along the upper Brue valley with the villages of Alford, Lovington, Wheathill and East Lydford off to the sides.
We then reach the Fosse Way (now numbered A37 here) at Lydford on Fosse and cross it at traffic lights. The road is now reasonably straight as we continue through the larger village of Keinton Mandeville and then pass Kingweston off to the north. Just after this, the two right turnings cross Butleigh Hill on a good quality road to meet the B3151 at an awkward crossroads on Collard Hill south of Street, then takes you over Walton Hill to the A39 at Ashcott - a useful cross-country route with less traffic than the less direct classified routes. Well, direct is relative, depending where A and B are....
The B3153 passes under the railway line again and reaches the B3151 properly just outside Somerton. A very short multiplex takes us across the Cary Bridge, and then we turn right into the small market town. The B3165 soon turns off to the left through the town centre, while we cross the railway once more and depart on the Langport Road. Passing between Upton and Pitney, we find Tengore Lane on the left, which is a signposted 'lorry route' from the A372 to avoid Huish Episcopi, sort of part of Langport. The B3153 then drops down the hill, getting quite narrow until it reaches the A372 properly, where the road ends.
History
This road then used to briefly multiplex along the A372 through Langport, before running through Curry Rivel to the A358 near Ash. However, as early as 1935 there were plans to upgrade this part of the route to an A-road. The original plan would have seen the A372 diverted along this route instead of heading into Bridgwater. For some reason this plan was not carried out, and it was not until the 1950s that the route was finally upgraded to the A378.
