City Council confirm re-opening date for Bristol's 'Chocolate Path'
The date, earmarked for September, has been called 'definitive'
It's been confirmed that a 'definitive date' has been earmarked for Bristol's Chocolate Path.
The path, which has been in a state of disrepair for a number of years, had originally been set to open in 2021, and then the early part of 2023 - but now, the confirmation many people have been waiting for in the city has finally been made by Cllr Don Alexander.
Cllr Alexander, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “I am really pleased we have a definitive date to reopen the Chocolate Path. The work to stabilise Cumberland Road and reinstate the historic pathway and a section of the Harbour Railway has been a massive and complex engineering project, which has uncovered lots of unknowns along the way.
"I appreciate this is a very important route for bus users to the Park & Ride, and also for many pedestrians and cyclists."
The work, undertaken by Griffiths, who are the council’s contractors, has involved stabilising Cumberland Road.
It's now official, that these repairs to stabilise Cumberland Road are to be be completed by 4 September 2023.
Cllr Alexander added: “These works have safeguarded the future of the popular Chocolate Path for many pedestrians and cyclists who use it."
The works were extended so that new designs could be drawn-up to deal with what Bristol City Council have described as 'a small amount of run-off around a new concrete section'.
Without this delay, they say the long-term integrity of the stabilisation works may have been compromised.
Work to refurbish the rest of the Harbour Railway track is needed before the heritage steam railway can reopen, however.
Cumberland Road will not reopen to inbound traffic on September 4th, though, because a new bus gate is being installed there, which will mean only buses, taxis, cycles, e-scooters and emergency vehicles will be able to travel into the city centre down it.
The bus gate will be put in place immediately east of Gas Ferry Road, and will be fully in place by the time of the full reopening.
It will include removing the existing traffic signals, installing new signage, a traffic island, a stretch of red road surfacing, road markings and a camera.
This means cars will be able to travel eastbound on Cumberland Road up to this point, which also means access by road to the SS Great Britain will be kept from both directions.
All vehicles will still be able to drive westbound along Cumberland Road when the bus gate is live.
Cumberland Road will be closed overnight in both directions from 7pm to 5.30am on 16, 17 and 18 August between Avon Crescent and Gas Ferry Road, including the junction of Cumberland Road and Gas Ferry Road for resurfacing works during the bus gate upgrades.
During the overnight road closure, the M2 Metrobus will divert via Coronation Road.
Councillor Alexander continued: “No traffic, other than buses and cycles, have been able to travel the full length of Cumberland Road into the city centre since 2020 because of the stabilisation works.
“Having a bus gate on this route will help towards meeting vital goals to reduce air pollution in Bristol, while improving bus journey times and reliability. It will also benefit residents and people walking and cycling on Spike Island.
“I would like to thank everyone for bearing with us while these important construction works are completed, helping to safeguard our harbour infrastructure.”
You can find out more about bus gates on the Bristol City Council website.