The number of lorries driving from Whatley Quarry near Frome to Hinkley Point C near Bridgwater has been cut by two thirds since a jetty opened at the nuclear facility.

The new jetty opened at Hinkley in the summer, and since then the quarry has cut back the number of lorries it uses to transport to the site from 90 to 35.

Instead, it now transports a lot of its aggregate via rail, with 21 wagons a day being sent in one journey up to Avonmouth, where it is loaded on to a boat and transported on to Hinkley Point.

The train leaves Whatley at 3.40am and gets in to Avonmouth at 7.30am, before being unloaded and sent back again at 12.30pm, to arrive back at the quarry at 2.30pm.

This has seen Whatley double the amount of aggregate it sends to Hinkley, though it is still yet to get halfway through the total amount it has been contracted to send.

The Hanson UK quarry employs 150 people, with another 200 included in the supply chain. It operates 24 hours a day with 12 train journeys each day to different projects around the country.

Blasting takes place three times a week, normally on a Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and Justin Collis, the quarry's production and closed sites manager, is keen to stress that it operates under a right first time safety culture.

He said: "Everything is done to the highest standard, it absolutely has to be.

"We use GPS-based radios for safety, electronic blast designs, drones - it is all very hi-tech.

"We also like to support the local community as much as possible, for example buying Scout group tents, working with schools and helping a local disabled riding arena."