CELEBRATIONS are already being planned by a North Somerset village which is hoping to be commuter traffic-free by 2016.

Barrow Gurney Parish Council is urging people to get behind proposals for a road which will divert heavy traffic away from it and other nearby villages.

The Times reported last month a consultation period is underway for the Government-backed South Bristol Link road which will run from the A370 at Long Ashton to the A38 at Hartcliffe.

Currently drivers going to and from the city, including to Bristol Airport, regularly use the roads and lanes in Backwell and Barrow Gurney.

Chairman of Barrow Gurney Parish Council, Eric Gates, said: “The parish council is fully supportive of the scheme, in fact the theme of our recent meeting was how we are going to take advantage of the moment in May 2016 when we can re-occupy the centre of the village.

“This is an enormously important time for us because there have been so many schemes mooted in the past 30 years or more and traffic volumes have been increasing steadily over that time.

“As I was walking to our village hall for the meeting I was struck twice by wing mirrors from speeding cars going passed, so it can’t come soon enough.”

Backwell Parish Council is due to discuss the issue at its monthly meeting tomorrow night (Thurs), when chairman Bob Taylor hopes councillors will be in favour of the road.

He said: “It will hopefully stop the rat run through Church Town because people driving from Wales instead of coming off the motorway and going through Easton-in-Gordano will stay on it straight to Bristol.

“And the only complaint we have about living near Bristol Airport is taxis bombing through our back lanes so hopefully it will stop that too.”

Bristol City and North Somerset Councils are preparing a joint planning application as part of the West of England rapid transport network, funded by the Department of Transport.

The plan is for a combined road and rapid transit route for buses using the A370 Long Ashton bypass and Park and Ride to Hengrove Park which will also include foot and cycle paths.

The public can have its say on the plans, which can be viewed at www.travelwest.info/sbl, before June 29, prior to an application being submitted in the autumn.

Work on the �45million scheme is due to start in May 2014.