Commuters often stuck in traffic on the A48 should be pleased to hear some £500,000 has been set aside to try and make the planned Chepstow bypass a reality.

Gloucestershire County Council approved its budget for the next financial year which includes £1m to “pump-prime” major infrastructure which may emerge in future.

And half of this is earmarked for a Chepstow bypass project.

Council leader Mark Hawthorne (C, Quedgeley) spoke of the successes the authority is having in improving the road network in Gloucestershire.

“[Work] for the A417 Missing Link is onsite now,” he told the meeting at Shire Hall.

“The M5 junction 9, junction 10, Arle Court, on time and on budget, our network of cycle routes keeping our county moving.

“But we want to go further, that’s why this budget invests another £500,000 to bring forward proposals for the Chepstow bypass, a real crunch point for our county.”

He said it is a key route for residents and businesses which desperately needs fixing.

“That’s why we are investing now to find solutions that will allow us to follow up on our successful bids for M5 Junction improvements and the missing link, and apply for government funding to deliver schemes in these areas.”

Congestion on the Wye Bridge towards the M48 Severn Bridge has caused poor air quality in Chepstow.

And campaigners have been fighting for a bypass to alleviate the problem for many years.

Monmouthshire and Gloucestershire County Council agreed in 2022 to advance plans for a new road to bypass Chepstow to end congestion in the town centre and at the Highbeech roundabout.

But Forest of Dean District Council rejected a motion last year to support a “traffic jam-busting” bypass for Chepstow and district chiefs described it as a “road to nowhere”.