 All goods moving from that bridge to the town had to pay tolls to the Borough of Ilchester, which increased the price of coal to the inhabitants.Navigation was also hampered by the restrictive size of the medieval bridge arch at Langport.The Ivelchester and Langport Navigation was conceived as a way of ensuring that boats could always reach the Ilchester town wharfs, and therefore duty would not be paid on goods using Pill Bridge Lane.