Cornwall Council will be called on to actively support a bid for critical safety changes at a notorious accident blackspot, which has claimed the lives of six people over the past five years – three of them in 2024 alone.

A motion for the upgrade of the Plusha junction on the A30 between Bodmin Moor and Launceston will be heard at a meeting of the full council on Tuesday, January 21. The council will be asked to support the re-evaluation of 2015 plans for a grade-separated junction at Plusha in order to develop a scheme and secure funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) and eventual implementation in partnership with National Highways.

Between 1999 and 2022, there were two fatal accidents at Plusha, with another four between 2023 and 2024. There were also 11 serious accidents between 1999 and 2022 where people required hospitalisation for significant injury; ten of those accidents have taken place since 2013.

The number of accidents at Plusha or its immediate vicinity for 1999-2012 was 29 and from 2013-2024 essentially the same (data for 2023 and 2024 is incomplete) but the number of serious/fatal accidents increased from 10.3 per cent to 48.3 per cent of the total. This can be compared with a negligible accident rate at the Kennards House and Five Lanes grade separated junctions.

In November Lib Dem MP for North Cornwall Ben Maguire said “enough is enough” and stressed that something must be done to improve the junction. Since the most recent fatal crash that month, National Highways has partially closed the dangerous junction with lit cones and new 50mph speed limit signs. This means right turn movements from the B3257 to the A30 eastbound are now restricted.

Hundreds of motorists have been caught speeding on the stretch of road since the new temporary speed limit was introduced.

The council motion has been proposed by Adrian Parsons, Lib Dem councillor for Altarnun and Stoke Climsland, who has long campaigned for safety changes at the junction. It has been seconded by Adam Paynter, Independent councillor for Launceston North and North Petherwin.

The move has been supported by Conservative portfolio holder for transport Connor Donnithorne and a number of other councillors of all political persuasions.

The motion states: “The junction at Plusha is known for its high accident rate including three fatalities in 2024 but despite proposals to permanently close the right turn from the B3257 onto the A30 eastbound, the grade junction design will not meet current standards for the strategic road network.

“A grade-separated junction would effectively eliminate the likelihood of serious or fatal accidents at the location, provide safe access to Plusha Services, improve local connectivity and generate economic benefit to the wider area. Funding of such a project is not without precedent as Cornwall Council has previously funded design works for significant road improvements, including the A30 Temple dualling, the St Austell Link Road and upgrades to the A38.

“This proactive approach to providing Cornwall with a reliable and safe strategic road network has allowed the Government to have ready-to-implement schemes as funds became available.”