The usually busy road near Bristol remains shut this weekend
The A37 near Pensford(Image: Google Maps)
A 17-mile diversion route remains in place this weekend to avoid a half-mile road closure. The A37 near Pensford, just south of Bristol, has been closed since Thursday morning (September 25) following an oil spill.
Police and the fire service attended the scene at the Chelwood roundabout, and the road was closed for a ‘deep clean’ to be carried out.
Yesterday evening (Friday), Bath and North East Somerset Council confirmed that the A37 will stay closed throughout the weekend for resurfacing works to take place to make the road safe again. Drivers are instead forced to divert via South Bristol and Keynsham to avoid “too narrow” country lanes.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), a spokesperson for the council wrote: “Update on A37 between A368 Chelwood roundabout & Pensford: works to replace the surfacing after an oil spill are under way. Our contractors will work through the night and weekend to reopen the road ASAP. Diversions are in place.”
The diversion route has been shared on traffic monitoring site, Causeway one.network, and takes drivers a whopping 17 miles out of their way just to get from one side of the road closure to the other. The affected area spans a distance of just half a mile.
The blue dotted line indicates the road closure in place after an oil spill on the A37(Image: Causeway one.network)
Drivers trying to reach Pensford from the Chelwood roundabout will now have to travel east along the A368 through Marksbury and Corston, before taking the A4 north-west through Keynsham up to Brislington, and then looping round via Knowle and heading south again past Whitchurch.
A road closure notice from Bath and North East Somerset Council reads: “Bath and North East Somerset Council hereby give notice that on Thursday 25th September 2025, A37 New Road, Pensford shall be closed to all traffic, in the interests of public safety, to enable Bath & North East Somerset Council to clear a half a mile fuel spill.
“The road will be closed at A37 New Road, Pensford from its junction with Short Lane extending to Chelwood roundabout, but the closure shall not apply to any vehicle associated with the works.
“The closure and diversion will be clearly indicated by traffic signs. The road will only be restricted as and when traffic signs are in position, and may not be affected for the whole of the period, but only for so long as is necessary to execute the works.
“Access will be maintained for residents and businesses where possible, although delays are likely due to the nature of the works. This notice will have a maximum duration of 5 days.”
Meanwhile, traffic monitoring site Inrix is reporting: “A37 in both directions closed due to emergency repairs and earlier spillage of oil on the road between A368 and Birchwood Lane. After a leak from a tanker on Thursday morning. Large vehicles should divert via A-Roads (Marksbury or Chew Magna), the country lanes are too narrow.”