Unpopular plans to close a road leading into a South Bristol neighbourhood are set to be scrapped this week. One of three routes into a part of Totterdown was due to close, as part of wider road safety improvements, but local drivers complained their journeys would be longer.
Bellevue Road is the last turning left at the northern end of the A37 Wells Road. Bristol City Council was planning to close the junction to cars, after concerns about a history of collisions there. The area would also have been improved for pedestrians and cyclists.
But the closure would mean leaving just two roads out of Totterdown, either down Oxford Street onto St John’s Lane or Windsor Terrace onto St Luke’s Road. Drivers struggle to pass each other in the very narrow streets in the area, and the closure was expected to add to congestion.
The plan formed part of a wider project along the Wells Road and Number 2 bus corridor, with bus lanes and pedestrian crossings, the rest of which will still be rolled out. Councillors on the transport policy committee will vote on approving a full business case on Thursday, October 24.
A committee report said: “This element will not be taken forward as part of this scheme following consultation. The issues we are trying to resolve at this location will be considered as part of the South Bristol Liveable Neighbourhood, and outcomes from this consultation will be fed into [that project].”
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The South Bristol Liveable Neighbourhood covers Totterdown, Bedminster and Southville, and is likely to include bollards to prevent rat-running, better crossings, and new trees. The council is in the early stages of consulting the public about the plans, with detailed proposals expected next spring.
Last month Green Councillor Lisa Stone, representing the Windmill Hill ward which includes Totterdown, wrote in an opinion piece for Bristol24/7 that a local survey showed a clear response against closing the Bellevue Road junction. She added that the former Labour administration “did not listen to residents”.
She said: “I would like to see the evidence which suggests that there is a problem with this junction and for the bus company to meet with me to discuss these issues. If necessary I would like to see some simple yellow hatching on the bus lane at this junction, to be enforced with CCTV.
“As for reducing air pollution, the offered alternative routes show that cars will need to be driven longer distances around the area, and this would create a lot of issues that simply do not outweigh the benefits. Not only that, I can see that there would be possible issues for emergency vehicles getting in and out of this area as well.
“This plan has simply not been thought through and the previous Labour administration clearly did not listen to any recommendations coming from local residents. If they had, I feel that this proposal would look remarkably different and would have reached the same aims, but with a better outcome.”
However transport consultants from AtkinsRéalis, who produced a full business case for the wider project, said the junction had “low levels of safety”. Several collisions were reported there between 2018 and 2023, according to data from the Department for Transport, with a “high proportion involving pedestrians or cyclists”, the business case said.
The plans were first proposed under the former Labour administration. Labour Cllr Don Alexander, former cabinet member for transport, said the closure had been properly considered, and the junction had a “proven history of danger to cyclists”.
Writing on X/ Twitter, he said: “It had been thought through — this junction has a proven history of presenting a danger to cyclists and motorcyclists. Nobody should put personal political advantage over the facts.”
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