Bath & North East Somerset Council’s highways team are cutting back highway verge vegetation to improve road safety in its rural areas.

More than 1,015km of highway verge will be cut back across Bath & North East Somerset, this should be completed by mid-July. Cutting back vegetation improves sight-line visibility at junctions and bends, making them safer to navigate for pedestrians, cyclists, wheelers and motorists.

The work also prevents traffic signs being obscured, creates a pedestrian refuge when no footway exists, and it keeps the vegetation and brushwood at a controllable level.

The Council expects disruption to traffic to be minimal.

Where it is safe to do so, verges are left uncut to allow benefits for the local wildlife and environment. Long grass and wildflowers are good for wildlife as they provide food and shelter for insects, birds, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians and they also provide flowers for pollinators. 

Councillor Manda Rigby, cabinet member for Transport, said: “Having good visibility at junctions is important for the safety of everyone using our roads, and these works are essential to help us achieve that.

“However, as we’ve done in previous years, we’ll leave suitable areas uncut for longer periods to encourage wildflowers, bees and other pollinators to thrive which is better for the environment.”     

The council’s highways teams cut verges twice a year to make sure the highways are kept as safe as possible. You can find more information and the grass cutting schedules for urban areas here.