M4 overpass in Wiltshire set for works after flooding

The bridge over the M4, linking Dauntsey Green to Daunstey Lock, has been blamed by villagers for causing severe flooding both on the motorway and in Daunstey during October of this year.

The incident saw up to “a foot of water” sweep through the village north of the M4, with around 30 properties suffering damage as a result.

Residents of The Green were particularly impacted by the floods, and Jacque Bailey, a local for the last 33 years, said the damage was “unprecedented” and had ruined many people’s homes.

Many believe that the overpass acts as a “dam” during heavy rainfall due to the culverts on the structure being too small to allow water to pass through during these periods.

Designs have been put forward in an attempt to fix this issue, which would involve alterations to nearby drainage ditches and an increase in the capacity of the culverts.

The Green at Dauntsey after flooding in October (Image: Submitted)

National Highways did not confirm a timescale for the realisation of the project but told this paper that they were working with local authorities on an intervention programme.

Chris Hilldrup, the route manager for National Highways, said: “We are working with Wiltshire Council and the Environment Agency on an intervention programme that will see re-profiling of the drainage ditches alongside the M4 and increasing the capacity of culverts to allow for more flood water.”

Last month Cllr Nic Puntis, the Wiltshire Council cabinet member for flooding, told this paper that the flooding of the M4 in October had “accelerated” the National Highways led project.

He added that a “green light” had been given for the final design phase of the scheme ahead of implementation, which he described as a “positive” step.

After this autumn’s floods, Cllr Puntis, who lived in Dauntsey for six years, explained the problems with the current overpass.

Flooding at the M4 overpass near Dauntsey (Image: Nic Puntis)

He said: “There is a significant problem with the size of the overpass culverts because they aren’t large enough to allow water through them during extreme weather conditions.

“That was highlighted by the huge amount of rainfall we had, the M4 was flooded and both sides of Dauntsey had massive floods due to the overpass.

“But the Paddy Field to the west of the overpass, which is a flood plain, had no water in it because the overpass is basically a dam and that’s the problem.”