Months of fresh roadworks to repair part of the river wall near Langton Street Bridge started this week. York Road, which is located on the south side of the river, closed from St Luke’s Road and Spring Street from Monday (December 9). The road closure marks a shift in strategy in Bristol City Council’s ongoing New Cut river walls stabilisation project.
Emergency works had been taking place to place one-tonne bags on the bank either side of Langton Street Bridge (Banana Bridge) to reduce the tidal pressure on the wall until long-term repairs can be carried out. But that work has now been put on hold due to safety fears.
Instead the council has decided to switch to focussing on the long-term repairs of the river wall due to the fact further heavy rain is expected meaning tide heights are unlikely to drop in the short-term.
Heavy rainfall in September and October led to tides that have been roughly 1.5m higher than normal. This has made it too dangerous at times for the council’s contractors to be on the river bank to help guide the remaining bags into place.
The council has decided to put the emergency work on hold and start the long-term repairs to the river wall further down York Road. Once these works are complete the work site and road closure will move to between St Luke’s Road towards the Bath Bridges roundabout.
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The work is expected to be completed in spring next year – which means the closures will be in place for months. This will lead onto the second stage of the project, which will see York Road reopen to traffic but with one side of the road remaining closed and temporary traffic lights in place.
According to the council the second stage of permanent repairs should take up to one year to complete – which means the road will not be fully open until spring 2026.
Councillor Ed Plowden, chair of the transport and connectivity committee, said: “In a bid to keep the timeline on track, we are pausing the emergency works and starting on the permanent repairs, which means switching around the road closure.
“I am sorry if this causes confusion, but we need to adapt quickly as circumstances change to try and keep this difficult project on track, and the safety of the work site must come first.
“I know how inconvenient the road closure is for local residents and businesses, and their visitors, so I’d like to thank you all again for your patience as we work to safeguard York Road and the river wall for future generations.”
The long-term repairs include:
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installing a sheet-piled retaining wall at the top of the bank to stabilise York Road
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building a concrete piled wall behind the existing river wall
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planting trees and vegetation along the stabilised embankment
These works are part of a wider £11.9 million New Cut river walls stabilisation initiative aimed at securing and reinforcing high-risk river walls along the New Cut of the River Avon and protecting the transport infrastructure alongside it.