A303 Sparkford to Ilchester
We’re upgrading a three-mile section of the A303 between Sparkford and Ilchester, to make the road safer and more reliable. The delivery of this scheme is part of a long term aim to create a high-quality dual carriage way link between London and the South East and the South West.
Project information
The A303/A358 corridor is a vital connection between the South West and London and the South East.
While much of the corridor is a dual carriageway, there are still over 35 miles of single carriageway. These sections act as congestion bottlenecks, particularly in the summer months and at weekends, causing delays to road users, and they add to an increased risk of accidents.
We're proposing to dual a three-mile single carriageway section between Sparkford and Ilchester. On an average day the road carries 23,500 vehicles, but numbers increase significantly in the summer, particularly at weekends making journeys unreliable and unpredictable. This scheme will reduce congestion, improve journey times and make our network safer for customers.
The new dualled section will start east of Podimore Roundabout and will follow the alignment of the existing A303 to Downhead. Travelling eastwards, it then moves north of the existing A303 single carriageway, allowing the existing road to be kept for use as a local road in this section.
The route then rises up West Camel Hill before crossing over the existing A303 at the junction with Steart Hill/Howell Hill. It then takes a southerly alignment before meeting up with the existing road again to pass between Vale Farm and the MOD signal station at Eyewell/Traits Land.
Finally, the route bypasses the existing Hazlegrove Roundabout to the north through the Registered Park and Garden associated with Hazlegrove House, before tying into the existing A303 Sparkford Bypass.
In delivering the scheme, we’re aiming to:
- improve the capacity of the road to reduce delays and queues that occur during peak hours and at key times of the year i.e. the height of summer.
- support economic growth, facilitating growth in jobs and housing by providing a free-flowing and reliable connection between the South East and the South West
- make the road safer, by providing additional capacity and reducing driver stress. We’ll make routes safer for pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders in the area.
- protect the environment and look for opportunities to improve it, minimising any unnecessary impact of the scheme on the surrounding natural and historic environment and landscape.
- work with local communities to reduce the impact of the road on a sense of community severance, and look for ways to improve local peoples’ quality of life
- make journey times more reliable and resilient, by providing more capacity it will become easier to manage traffic when incidents occur.
Documents
Survey Fact Sheets - Introduction
Survey Fact Sheets - Noise
Survey Fact Sheets - Agriculture, Soils and Land
Survey Fact Sheets - Ecology
Survey Fact Sheets - Air Quality
Survey Fact Sheets - Archaeology
Survey Fact Sheets - Water Ecology
Survey Fact Sheets - Ground conditions (Geotechnical)
Environmental Statement - Non-Technical Summary
Environmental Statement - Addendum
Environmental Statement - Addendum Appendix A Section 1
Environmental Statement - Addendum Appendix A Section 2
Environmental Statement - Addendum Appendix B Section 1
Environmental Statement - Addendum Appendix B Section 2
Environmental Statement - Addendum Appendix B Section 3
Environmental Statement - Addendum Appendix B Section 4
The Development Consent Order (DCO) process was established by the Planning Act 2008 and is used for certain large and complex schemes (including highway improvements) that have been designated as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) by the Government.
The Secretary of State for Transport granted the Development Consent Order (DCO) for the A303 Sparkford to Ilchester dualling scheme on 29 January 2021. Links to key DCO documentation can be found below:
- Examining Authority’s report and recommendations to the Secretary of State for Transport
- Secretary of State for Transport’s decision letter and statement of reasons
- Development Consent Order as made by the Secretary of State for Transport
- Book of Reference
You can view our full Development Consent Order application on the Planning Inspectorate website.
This includes documents identified under Article 43 and Schedule 9 of our Development Consent Order, which have been certified as true copies by the Secretary of State.
General Vesting Declaration documents
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.1 Plan (unsigned)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.1 Plan (signed)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.1 (signed)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.1 (unsigned)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.2 Plan (unsigned)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.2 Plan (signed)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.2 (signed)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.2 (unsigned)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.3 Plan (unsigned)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.3 Plan (signed)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.3 (signed)
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester General Vesting Declaration No.3 (unsigned)
Related Road projects

Traffic information
Information about scheduled roadworks and events on our motorways and major roads.Sign up for updates!
Keep up to date with what's happening on this scheme by signing up to our updates.