Support is flooding in for safe access for walkers and cyclists on the A35 as they are currently ‘taking their life in their hands’ using the road.

Chideock resident Winston Maskell is calling for there to be a path on the north side of the A35 from Chideock to Symondsbury as the A35 is ‘extremely hazardous’.

He said: “The hazards of walking and cycling on the stretch of the A35 between Chideock and Bridport is well understood by most people who live in the area and, with the onset of the Covid crisis leading to an upsurge in cycling, I thought it worthwhile trying to get the issue of safer egress from the village investigated.”

Mr Maskell calculates that the distance from where the pavement ends in Chideock to where the next begins by the old London Inn is around one mile.

He added: “Walking, cycling, leave the car, are very much the buzz words at present and now seems the ideal time for this matter to be pushed forward by our elected representatives to achieve this link.”

Chideock Parish Council said it ‘always fully supported plans’ for a path.

A spokesman said: “At present, anyone walking or cycling along the A35 between Chideock and Bridport takes their life in their hands.”

They explained this had been an issue since 1998. Three applications have been submitted but had not been successful due to a landowner not agreeing, uncertainty about a small section of an existing right of way and the highways agency refusing permission back in 2011 due to the impending Olympics.

The parish council has approached its Dorset ward councillor, Cllr Simon Christopher, Cllr Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s portfolio holder for highways, travel and environment, and West Dorset MP Chris Loder who it says support the project.

Mr Loder said: “Initiatives that offer safe and green alternatives to the congested A35 through Chideock are always worth considering and I look forward to learning more about the proposal.”

Symondsbury Parish Council said it was ‘very interested’ in Mr Maskell’s proposal and a proposal for the Symondsbury end of the link will be discussed at its next meeting on September 8 at 7pm virtually.

The Chideock Bypass Working Group (CBWG) said it was ‘fully supportive of this environmentally friendly and healthy proposal’ and hopes that with this ‘new enthusiasm’ it will actually happen.

A spokesman said: “However, CBWG would like to remind everyone that whilst this would be a wonderful facility for villagers and tourists alike to be able to safely walk/cycle between the two locations, it will in no way resolve any of the other many problems arising from the A35 passing through the village. As CWBG has pointed out on many occasions, these other problems all stem from the annual average daily traffic flow of 17,000 plus vehicles which will only be solved once a suitable alternative route has become available.”

Chideock was recently named the worst village in the UK for air pollution following a study by Friends of the Earth.