A new bridge across the New Cut River Avon should be seriously considered, according to Bristol City Council’s transport chief. Cllr Don Alexander came to the conclusion after sharing an update that work to repair Gaol Ferry Bridge would take longer and cost more money than first thought, because the state of the bridge was worse than expected.
The repair work on the 1930s suspension bridge is now expected to take a full year or more - and it won’t be open before the end of the summer at the earliest - which Cllr Alexander acknowledged would be a blow to the people of Bedminster and Southville, and the businesses in Wapping Wharf who have been badly hit by its closure.
Read next: 'Paper thin' Gaol Ferry Bridge in Bristol much worse than first thought says council
But Cllr Alexander also added that a new bridge was something he was now in favour of, after realising just how well-used the existing bridges across the New Cut are. Planning permission for a new bridge over the New Cut at Camden Road in Southville was granted back in 2015, but it was a project that didn't survive the transition between George Ferguson's administration and Marvin Rees' Labour one in 2016.
At present, there are just three pedestrian and cycle bridges from South Bristol into the city centre - Vauxhall Bridge at the western end of Spike Island, Gaol Ferry Bridge from Southville to Wapping Wharf, and the Langton Street Bridge - better known as the Banana Bridge - from the eastern end of Bedminster across to Redcliffe.
Other bridges across the New Cut include the Ashton Swing Bridge, which was restored and reopened in 2018 to take pedestrians, cyclists and the m2 Metrobus from Ashton Gate to the Cumberland Basin, and the road bridges at Brunel Way, the Bedminster Bridge and Bath Road Bridge.
Where a fourth pedestrian bridge would be created is not something Cllr Alexander went into, but he said he thought it was needed, given the number of people now walking and cycling across the New Cut.
“As a lightweight suspension bridge, the Gaol Ferry Bridge was not originally designed to carry quite the number of people who, up until its temporary closure, used it each day to cross between South Bristol and this part of Spike Island,” he said.
“After we have invested in fixing existing structures, I think it is only right that the city considers the need for another nearby foot and cycle bridge across the New Cut. As Bristol continues to grow, to 550,000 residents by the middle of this century, that would help better distribute the load and relieve the pressure on the 60 metre span of Gaol Ferry Bridge.
“In the meantime, we will continue to make sure these essential works are completed in the shortest possible time, and people will need to carry on using the diversion routes across Vauxhall Bridge or Bedminster Bridges,” he added.
The local councillors in Southville said they doubted it will ever happen under the present council administration, pointing out that planning permission was granted back in the mid-2010s for a new bridge across the New Cut halfway between Gaol Ferry Bridge and Vauxhall Bridge, but it was never constructed.
Cllr Tony Dyer, (Green, Southville) said: “Ten months ago, we proposed the need for additional bridges across the New Cut to support the expansion of walking and cycling in Southville and other areas of South Bristol.
“Planning permission had been granted for a new cycling bridge near Camden Road nearly eight years ago but this was never built. Meanwhile the Whitehouse Street Regeneration has also seen provision of an additional bridge mooted.
“If we want to encourage more walking and cycling we need to invest not just in repairing what we have, but also in adding additional capacity,” he added.
And Cllr Christine Townsend (Green, Southville) said Cllr Alexander’s new-found belief that a new bridge was needed was a ‘distraction’.
“Although we support more bridges across the New Cut, we have zero expectation of any being delivered under this administration given the timescales required,” she said. “Cllr Alexander's comments are simply an attempt to distract attention away from yet another Labour capital overspend and delay,” she added.
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