South Bristol residents fear that they could end up being 'completely cut off' from the rest of the city, as the council considers a new road solution for congested Brunel Way. It comes as this weekend saw more traffic chaos as the busy stretch of road was closed in one direction.
At his annual State of the City Address, Mayor Marvin Rees mentioned plans for the 'Western Harbour', which could see the bridge and aging Brunel Way replaced with an all-new road solution with the aim of carrying 60,000+ vehicles a day. It could also see the removal of the slip roads and ramps around the Cumberland Basin to free up space for housing.
Following the address, Bristol Live looked into just what the future could hold for Brunel Way, and spoke with some local residents about how these plans could impact them. Posting the story to our Facebook page, locals took to the comments to share their own thoughts on the road's future and what it could mean for South Bristol as a whole.
Read more: The future is uncertain for Bristol's busiest road
One overarching theme was that residents are worried about being isolated from the rest of the city. One resident commenting on Facebook said: "It makes me so angry as every 'new' initiative makes it harder for the south of the city to head north (or anywhere).
"We'll be cut off completely soon."
A second agreed, adding: "Well might as well cut off south Bristol completely! Only a few bridges left - sorry one bridge!"
While a third described how long it took them to travel some five miles across the city. They commented: "It took us an hour the other Saturday afternoon to go from Knowle West to Whiteladies Road!"
Others feared that businesses would be at risk if the plans to remove Brunel Way went ahead. One local wrote: "Lots of businesses would go due to the fact no one could get there and they would not be able to run properly."
But some were all for changing the route to make it less traffic-prone, even if it took some disruption to achieve that, with one in particular writing: "The entire network needs re-developing for a more efficient way to traffic flow."
With Bristol's Clean Air Zone (CAZ) arriving to the city at the end of the month, many discussions revolved around what impact this would have for Brunel Way. One local commented: "Council won't want to get rid of it as it will be the biggest money spinner going when congestion charge starts even if it is not in central Bristol which was supposed to be where charges were implemented."
While on the other side of the coin, the counter argument was that the road simply wouldn't be used when the CAZ comes into force. Another local said: "Let's see how far the council can stretch the line. If they had their way, the whole of Bristol would be a no go zone. Shame the transport infrastructure isn't able to provide a better solution."
Overall though, with CAZ comments aside, South Bristol residents believed this busy stretch of road, often dubbed the busiest in the city, is a vital link. One commented: "Of course it's needed. It's been absolute chaos since work started on September 19 for four weeks - they didn't meet their deadline either did they, the volume of traffic trying to get across proves the need for it surely!"
And another added: "I cannot wait for this to be finished, it's caused terrible delays in my job. For my SEN children getting to their place of education, the stress and upset it has caused them is very sad.
"We need it for sure. This weekend has been chaos and proves the road is needed."
In a statement ahead of the works, Bristol City Council said the "essential" roadworks had been planned to make sure the route across the bridge remains open as much as possible, to minimise disruption to people using the Cumberland Basin flyover. It said Avon Bridge was "found to be in very poor condition during a detailed investigation in 2021".
Speaking at the end of October Councillor Don Alexander, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “Refurbishing Avon Bridge is essential to protect the structure from further water damage and keep the structure operational as it reaches the end of its lifecycle.
“Brunel Way is a major route, so we’ve worked hard on a plan to keep the bridge open as much as possible throughout the works. However, they are likely to delay people as they travel through the area, so we are suggesting finding alternative routes and hope that everyone bears with us while we repair this important bridge.”
Read next:
- Bristol's Clean Air Zone: Everything we know about the scheme a month before it comes into force
- Where the borders for the scheme will fall street by street
- When will the CAZ charges operate
- Clean Air Zone fee and how people will be charged
- Bristol Clean Air Zone timeline: the story so far as start date finally announced
