Multi-million-pound project along New Cut of the River Avon starts

Bristol City Council's 'ambitious' £11.9 million project is said to reflect their commitment to 'addressing inherited infrastructure challenges'.

They say potential failure of any of the river walls along the River Avon could lead to severe consequences, including 'loss of life, and major disruption to the transport network'.

From today (March 4th), they're working to stabilise the high-risk structures along the New Cut.

According to the local authority, out of the 194 retaining river walls along the Floating Harbour and New Cut, 58 are in a critical or serious structural condition, with 11 considered to be high risk.

They're starting a five-year stabilisation programme that will start with repair work at Bedminster Bridge, ahead of investigatory works, which will be carried out at three more locations in the spring.

As part of the works, the following will be happening:

• Repair work to the river wall on the southwest corner of Bedminster Bridge where the roundabout joins Coronation Road - which will see a section of the pavement being narrowed
• Work in the spring to look at the river wall alongside Cumberland Road - 90 metres from Gaol Ferry Bridge
• Investigatory works in the spring at the natural rock faces along the riverbank near Gaol Ferry Bridge
• Work to investigate the river wall alongside York Road next to Langton Street Bridge, also known as the Banana Bridge

Repairs will be carried out on various sections of river walls along the New Cut as the works progress.

Councillor Don Alexander, Cabinet Member for Transport, commented: "It's encouraging that work will be starting this month to stabilise our river wall assets, crucial for the long-term safety and resilience of our waterfront infrastructure and transport network.

“The Floating Harbour is an integral and historic part of the city, supporting diverse businesses, homes, and wildlife, while enhancing Bristol’s tourism appeal.

“This investment of £11.9 million reflects our commitment to securing Bristol’s future by addressing inherited infrastructure challenges. It is on top of our rolling £16 million programme to restore six key New Cut bridges and an investment of around £1.8 million into the sluice infrastructure, which protects the harbourside and surrounding areas from flooding, by controlling water levels within the harbour.

“The programme of work underscores the importance of proactive maintenance, mitigating risks, and safeguarding the harbourfront for all the communities it serves."

The wider programme of work includes repairing Underfall Sluice footbridge and further investigations, ecological assessments, and scoping for repairs at four additional river wall sites, including next to Paynes Shipyard, Camden Road, Gaol Ferry ramp, and Feeder Road jetty.

Griffiths, the council’s contractor, will be carrying out these works.

Find out more about the New Cut river walls stabilisation project here.

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