Residents across the Stokes are bracing themselves for weeks of severe traffic congestion resulting from the planned closure of a major commuter route through the area.

Gipsy Patch Lane is set to be closed to motorised vehicles at the railway bridge in Little Stoke for four weeks from Monday 3rd June to enable BT to divert its underground cables ahead of the bridge being replaced over a 12-day period spanning Easter 2020.

The new, much wider, concrete bridge will accommodate four lanes of traffic (one bus lane and one general traffic lane in each direction), along with shared-use paths on both sides of the road.

The surface of the highway under the bridge will be lowered by 1.7m to allow taller vehicles, including double-decker buses, to pass through safely.

The June closure comes ahead of a further planned eight-month full road closure at the bridge starting in early 2020.

South Gloucestershire Council (SGC), which is responsible for the Cribbs Patchway MetroBus Extension (CPME) scheme, of which the bridge replacement work forms a major part, originally said that the June closure would apply to “all highway users”. However, it was recently revealed that a route under the bridge for pedestrians and dismounted cyclists will be maintained during the closure.

Signs giving notice of the upcoming June road closure and advising motorists to “seek other routes” were put out in the week commencing 20th May. To avoid confusion, SGC says it will promote just a single signed diversion route, using Bradley Stoke Way and the A38 (see map below). However, it is widely anticipated that motorists with local knowledge and those using satnav equipment will attempt to use other diversion routes, which is likely to lead to significantly increased congestion on some smaller local roads.

More: Diversion map. Businesses open as normal. »

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A planned four-week full closure of Gipsy Patch Lane will commence next Monday (3rd June), South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) has confirmed.

The road will be closed to all vehicles at the railway bridge, which is located near the junction with Station Road.

The closure is required to allow BT to divert underground utilities in preparation for construction of the Cribbs Patchway MetroBus Extension (CPME), which is expected to start later this year.

In a change to previously announced plans, the existing footway under the bridge will now be kept open for pedestrians and dismounted cyclists throughout the June closure.

A signed diversion route via Bradley Stoke Way and the A38 will be in place (see map below).

Access to properties and side roads along Gipsy Patch Lane will be maintained and no disruption to the supply of utilities is expected. Businesses and shops along and near Gipsy Patch Lane will be open as normal.

A council spokesperson added that temporary traffic lights may be used at the junction of Gipsy Patch Lane with Station Road “for a period” during the June roadworks.

In addition, ground investigations and surveys will be carried out near the bridge during late May and in June. This will include the removal of some vegetation on the railway embankments but will not require any further road closures.

More: Further eight-month road closure planned for 2020 »

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With the planned four-week full closure of Gipsy Patch Lane during June now less than a month away, South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) says it will soon reveal details of the signed diversion routes that will be in operation during the upcoming work.

Further full and partial closures of Gipsy Patch Lane are planned over the next two years, including a full closure lasting approximately eight months from “early 2020”.

The road closures are needed to allow the existing narrow arch railway bridge to be replaced by a much wider concrete structure.

The work is being carried out as part of the Cribbs Patchway MetroBus Extension (CPME) scheme, which also involves the creation of new bus lanes along parts of Gipsy Patch Lane.

An SGC spokesperson said:

“We understand that this work will have a major impact on traffic in the nearby and wider area. We apologise in advance for this inconvenience and would like to assure everyone that we are doing everything we can to minimise disruption to residents, businesses and road users.”

The council recently conducted an online travel survey aimed at users of Gipsy Patch Lane and it says that the results of this, along with data collected from traffic survey cameras that were temporarily installed at points on the local road network during March, are being used to inform its traffic management planning.

Details of a series of public drop-in information sessions, at which further details of the CPME work and associated traffic diversion routes will be provided, are shown below.

All information displayed at the drop-in events will also be made available on the SGC website at www.southglos.gov.uk/CPmetrobus

More: Shuttle bus to be provided for non-motorised road users? »

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South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) says it received an “excellent” response rate to a recently conducted online travel survey aimed at users of Gipsy Patch Lane. The results of the survey will be used to help plan the traffic management needed during a series of full closures of the road, the first of which is due to start on Monday 3rd June and last for one month.

The road closures, over a period of nearly two years, are needed to allow the existing narrow arch railway bridge to be replaced by a much wider concrete structure.

The work is being carried out as part of the Cribbs Patchway MetroBus Extension (CPME) scheme, which also involves the creation of new bus lanes along parts of Gipsy Patch Lane.

Local residents may have noticed temporary traffic survey cameras mounted at various points around the Stokes during March. SGC has confirmed that these cameras are connected to the CPME works. A spokesperson said:

“We will use recorded data to determine journey times and the number of vehicles travelling between the points at which the cameras are located. This will help us to plan diversion routes and traffic management in the area during the CPME construction work. We may use cameras for this purpose at other times during the project too.”

“We will publicise further information about the June highway closure as soon as it is confirmed – we currently expect this to be in early May. Following that, there will be further information published on an ongoing basis associated with phases of construction and traffic management.”

More information: MetroBus Extension Build

This article originally appeared in the April 2019 issue of the Stoke Gifford Journal magazine (on page 3). The magazine is delivered FREE, EVERY MONTH, to over 5,000 homes in Stoke Gifford, Little Stoke and Harry Stoke. Phone 01454 300 400 to enquire about advertising or leaflet insertion.

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