Ring Road section closed this weekend

As the long-lasting works on the Bromley Heath Viaduct come to an end, the contraflow will be removed this weekend.

To do this safely there needs to be a full closure of the A4174 Ring Road in both directions from the Wick Wick roundabout to the Hambrook traffic lights from 8pm on Friday 27 April until 6am on Monday 30 April. Signed diversions will be in place.

Further information is available from www.southglos.gov.uk/bhviaduct

Bromley Heath viaduct works from 22 July - reminder and details

We’ve already reported on the works to the Bromley Heath viaduct on the Ring Road, which will have major travel implications across our area.

Although the Government was not prepared to stump up any more cash, the West of England Joint Committee did recently agree funding from the Local Enterprise Partnership Economic Development Fund (EDF) to reduce the work from 52 weeks to 33 weeks. So the extra cash is being taken from other regional projects, it's not "new money".

Traffic management will be put in this weekend, Saturday 22 to Sunday 23 July, and the actual maintenance work will start on Monday 24 July.

South Gloucestershire Council have put together some very clear web pages on the project here

One key issue is the best routes to avoid some of the jams. For example, to get to the M32 the Winterbourne route from Yate will be better than going via Coalpit Heath. The same web page shows the changes at Winterbourne traffic lights.

Temporary speed limit on A46 at Tormarton

South Glos Council is temporarily introducing a 40mph speed limit on the A46 for 450m north of the junction 18 roundabout from 24 July for the duration of the Bromley Heath viaduct works. They have already installed traffic lights to control the B4465 junction during that period.

Bromley Heath Viaduct - more cash, extra public meeting, but more chaos

Back in April we reported about the works to the Bromley Heath viaduct on the Ring Road. We are pleased to tell you that the West of England Joint Committee has agreed extra cash so that the works will be speeded up, so that the project (and the traffic problems) will only last 33 weeks rather than 50 weeks or so.

However the work is likely to have massive travel implications, particularly in the rush hour. Not only for people who use the A4174 but also for people who travel through Westerleigh or use the Westerleigh Road through Codrington  or the A432 through Old Sodbury. People are going to be using very different routes to try to give the chaos a wide berth, so travel changes as far away as the A46 are being put in place, e.g. the temporary traffic lights at the A46 / B4465 junction.

Traffic management will be put in over the weekend of Saturday 22 to Sunday 23 July, and the actual maintenance work will start on Monday 24 July.

Bearing in mind that the traffic diversions and holdups will affect drivers from our area, South Glos Council has arranged two more residents engagement meetings covering the proposed traffic management measures and recommended traffic routes:

• Longwell Primary School, Monday 10th July, 6:00pm – 8:00pm
• Dodington Parish Council Hall, Finch Road, Tuesday 11th July, 5:00pm – 7:00pm

Details of the project and the work involved are available at www.southglos.gov.uk/bhviaduct

Bromley Heath Viaduct works - initial traffic proposals

We've previously reported on the Bromley Heath viaduct works on the ring road, which will involve the southern viaduct being closed for up to a year. South Glos council has published traffic management proposals for our area during the works.

A number of people have raised concerns about these proposals. Claire Young has discussed these with the relevant highways officer, who has reassured her that all the concerns people are raising will be taken into account when drawing up the final plans.

All public meetings are currently on hold because of the “purdah” period for the Metro Mayor election. There will however be further public drop-ins in May and June, including:

• 6-8pm Tuesday 9^th May at Frampton Cotterell C of E School
• 10am-12 noon Saturday 27^th May in Emerson’s Green Village Hall

South Glos Council has made bids to both the Department for Transport and the West of England Partnership for additional funding in order to shorten the works.

For more information about the work visit www.southglos.gov.uk/bhviaduct

If you have any questions please contact the council at bhviaduct@southglos.gov.uk

Bromley Heath Viaduct work to go ahead, delays inevitable

Bromley Heath Viaduct will undergo a £5.9 million maintenance programme to strengthen the 1960s structure and provide improvements for cyclists and pedestrians.

The improvement works will be carried out west bound, between the Bromley Heath roundabout and the Hambrook / Bristol Road junction. Work will begin in June/July this year for a maximum duration of one year, but South Glos will try to secure additional funding to accelerate the work programme and reduce the timescale. Essential maintenance of the viaduct structure will be combined with improvements to widen the shared footpath for cyclists and pedestrians, which means that the total maximum time required on site would be one year rather than two.

Because of the extent of the work, the southern viaduct will be completely closed to all traffic for the duration of the project. This is because the removal of the worn out parts of the structure will mean it is too weak to safely carry any traffic until the maintenance is complete. During the closure, all traffic will be diverted on to the northern viaduct as other options would require a significant one to two mile diversion onto narrow roads. Unfortunately this will cause significant delays, as this is one of the busiest sections of the A4174, and the impact will be felt on other local roads too. Ultimately if the work wasn't done, the southern viaduct would become too unsafe to use.

For more information about the work schedule visit www.southglos.gov.uk/bhviaduct

View a video of the current state of the viaduct here https://vimeo.com/184502794

If you have any questions please contact the council at bhviaduct@southglos.gov.uk