The village is going 20 mph

Dorset Council proposes a 20 mph limit through Abbotsbury, from Town Lane to beyond Bishop's Road, plus Back Street, Church Street and the road down to the Swannery, with a 30 mph stretch on the way in from the west. The consultation closed in July; no start date yet.

Dorset Council wants the roads through Abbotsbury to be 20 mph, and the paperwork to make that happen has been through its public consultation. Here is what it covers, where it has got to, and what happens next.

Which roads

Almost all of the village. The proposed 20 mph limit runs along the B3157 from the Town Lane junction on the west side, through West Street, Market Street and Rodden Row, and out past the Bishop's Road junction on the east side. It takes in Back Street, Rosemary Lane, Hands Lane and Glebe Close, and it runs down Church Street and Grove Lane as far as the bottom of the hill by Chapel Coppice, which is the road to the Swannery.

On the way in from the Bridport direction there is a new 30 mph stretch between Cleverlawns and Town Lane, so drivers step down from the open road to 30 and then to 20 rather than dropping straight to 20 at the village sign.

Chapel Lane and Red Lane are not in the order, and nor is the B3157 beyond the village in either direction.

Why

The council's stated reasons are the standard ones behind its 20 mph policy: to bring speeds down to a level that suits a village street with people walking, cycling and crossing, and to make it safer for children to walk to school. Abbotsbury is one of eleven places in this round, alongside Portesham, Burton Bradstock, West Bay, Bridport, Broadmayne, Charminster, Leigh, Loders, Maiden Newton and Warmwell.

Where it has got to

The public notice went out on 25 June 2026 and the consultation closed on 17 July 2026. The council's traffic regulation team now goes through the comments it received, decides whether to make the order as drafted or change it, and then seals it. The draft order says it comes into force on a date "to be confirmed", so there is no start date yet. Once it is made, the signs and road markings follow, and the limit applies from the date the order names, once the signs are up.

What it means day to day

For anyone driving through, the whole of the village street becomes 20, with 30 on the western approach. The coast road either side of the village is unchanged. There is no mention in the order of cameras, humps or any other physical measures; it is a signed limit.

The full order, the notice and the maps are on the council's consultation site, and the traffic regulation team can be reached at [email protected] or on 01305 221000. This page will be updated when the council announces a date.

Source: https://consultation.appyway.com/dorset/moving-order/1b2f9181-8b33-47c2-b21e-a8d308e2ab49