A new traffic arrangement designed to relieve congestion at Shanes Castle on Bath Road, Devizes, should go ahead before the former Browfort site is sold off.

Coun Philip Whitehead, chairman of Devizes Area Board, told the public meeting at the sports club on Monday night that the scheme to introduce three-way lights at the junction of Dunkirk Hill was dependent on widening the road there.

He said: “We may need a bit of Browfort land and we don’t want Browfort sold and another owner to put a stop to the work.”

He said the new owner of the site, which is likely to be used for housing, may be persuaded to contribute to the cost of the scheme. So far there have been no firm expressions of interest and the site may not be sold for up to three years.

The junction at Shanes Castle has been the cause of major congestion for years and air pollution at the spot is regularly in excess of European Union standards.