MetroBus contractors Alun Griffiths have announced that they will commence construction of the final stretch of new bus lane on Bradley Stoke Way next week (w/c Monday 27th February). The work area is located at the southern end of Bradley Stoke Way between Great Meadow Roundabout (junction with Baileys Court Road) and Great Stoke (Rabbit) Roundabout.

Vegetation clearance at the site began several weeks ago and some of the work area (opposite the junction with The Worthys) has already been fenced off.

The objective is to widen the carriageway to construct a new southbound bus lane on the eastern verge of the road, starting from a point approximately 300m back from Great Stoke Roundabout.

Full details may be viewed in a plan of the work area [PDF, 1MB].

A Griffiths spokesperson said:

“We anticipate that these works will last for approximately three months. Initially, we need to complete some groundwork, removing topsoil and the embankment. Temporary traffic lights will be required over a period which shall remain intermittent throughout the scheme, with an overall duration not expected to exceed three weeks over the anticipated three-month construction period. These traffic lights will be in operation at off-peak times only.”

“Earthworks will be planned once trial holes have been sunk. The project manager may decide to delay the earthworks until a favourable weather window materialises, in order to minimise issues with mud on the road.”

More: Contractor warns of "noise and vibration"

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Just when it looked like there was light at the end of the tunnel, with the end of the MetroBus roadworks finally in sight, commuters in north Bristol have been dealt a crushing blow with the news that a section of the A4174 Ring Road near Hambrook is to be reduced to 50 percent capacity (one lane each way instead of two) for up to 12 months starting in June or July.

South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) says the work is required in order to undertake essential maintenance on one of two parallel viaducts that carry the road over the River Frome between the Hambrook lights and Bromley Heath Roundabout.

The southern viaduct, which carries the westbound carriageway, requires work on: pier (support) strengthening, bearing and hinge replacement, drainage improvements, water proofing, parapet replacement, and concrete repairs.

A separate major project to provide improvements for cyclists and pedestrians using the bridge would also require closure of the southern viaduct for a year, if done independently of the structural work.

Money for the work will come from two grants already allocated to SGC by the Department for Transport; these originate from the Challenge Fund and the Cycle Ambition Fund.

After considering a range of options, councillors have decided that the work will begin in June/July this year for a maximum duration of one year, but with an aim to try to secure additional funding to accelerate the work programme and reduce the timescale. Both the essential maintenance of the viaduct structure and the improvements to widen the shared footpath for cyclists and pedestrians will be combined, which means that the total maximum time required on site would be one year rather than two.

The total cost of the work, when carried out over 12 months, is estimated at £5.9 million. Accelerating the programme, should additional funds be secured, would add between £0.8 and £3.7 million, depending on the timescale reduction required (ranging from 15 to 30 weeks).

SGC’s head of street care and transport Mark King said:

“The extent of the work requires the southern viaduct to 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 on to narrow roads.

More: Work will cause "significant delays and inconvenience" »

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MetroBus contractors Alun Griffiths have confirmed plans to complete the resurfacing of Bradley Stoke Way over the first two nights of this week, which will involve the use of five-way traffic lights around Patchway Brook Roundabout (near Aldi).

It is anticipated that traffic control will be active from 8pm each night.

A Griffiths spokesperson said:

“Having now concluded the night-time surfacing along Bradley Stoke Way between the Aztec West and Patchway Brook roundabouts, we shall, over two nights, Monday and Tuesday 13th/14th February, surface the remaining section of Bradley Stoke Way immediately east of Patchway Brook Roundabout. This is approximately a 40-metre stretch. We shall be completing this at night from 8pm until 5am (or sooner) using five-way temporary traffic lights around Patchway Brook Roundabout.”

The aim is to complete one lane on Monday night and the other on Tuesday night.

The spokesperson added:

“We look forward to the commissioning of the main traffic lights at both the Woodlands Lane junction and Orchard Gate by South Gloucestershire Council before the junctions can be made fully functional within our programme before the end of this month.”

Related links:

• MetroBus community website (Alun Griffiths)
• MetroBus construction in Bradley Stoke (The Journal)

N.B. Any further updates received from the contractors will be appended as comments on this post.

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MetroBus contractor Alun Griffiths and South Gloucestershire Council say they are on schedule to have the junction of Woodlands Lane with Bradley Stoke Way fully reopened by the end of February, subject to weather conditions allowing resurfacing operations to be completed as planned.

The Woodlands Lane junction was closed to all traffic on 2nd September 2015, for an estimated 18 weeks, but problems with uncharted and incorrectly charted gas and water mains have delayed work in the area. The ‘left turn in’ reopened on 26th February 2016 and the ‘left turn out’ on 31st May 2016, but the critical ‘right turn in’ and ‘right turn out’ movements are currently still unavailable 74 weeks after the original closure.

A series of overnight (8pm to 5am) closures of Bradley Stoke Way for resurfacing work, anticipated to span a period of three to four weeks, began on Wednesday 18th January. Initially, the closures have been ‘westbound only’ between Patchway Brook Roundabout (near Aldi) and the Aztec West Roundabout, but as we went to print we were informed that they were expected to be changed to ‘eastbound only’ from the beginning of February. [For the latest news, see our dedicated MetroBus Build page.]

Further overnight closures of the eastbound carriageway between the Woodlands Lane junction and Patchway Brook Roundabout are expected to be required during the week commencing Monday 6th February. Details of these will be announced on the Bradley Stoke Journal website and on the Alun Griffith’s community website.
A full weekend closure between the Woodlands Lane junction and Patchway Brook Roundabout had previously been on the cards, but this will now only be required if overnight work is disrupted by the weather.

Work on traffic signals at both the Woodland Lane and Orchard Gate junctions will take place over the same period as the resurfacing work.

Overnight works are being carried out between 8pm and 5am (approx.) with a target to complete the most noisy operations by 11pm. However, Griffiths warn that noise levels will still be noticeable throughout the night due to “vibration, warning beepers and moving plant”.

More: Work at other end of BSW set to start mid/end February »

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MetroBus contractors Alun Griffiths have confirmed that overnight closures of Bradley Stoke Way for final resurfacing will continue from Monday to Friday this week (6th to 10th February), between the hours of 8pm and 5am.

The closures this week will be eastbound-only, covering either the full section between the Aztec West Roundabout and Patchway Brook Roundabout (near Aldi) or the shorter section between the Woodlands Lane junction and Patchway Brook Roundabout.

Signed diversions will be in place. The westbound carriageway will remain open at all times.

A Griffiths spokesperson said:

“We are planning three night time closures of the entire eastbound carriageway from Aztec West to Patchway Brook during the first three nights (Monday to Wednesday) of this week, each from 8pm until 5am or sooner. The remainder of the week will include eastbound closures from Woodlands Lane to Patchway Brook for the final wearing surface.”

“As always, the surfacing work is weather dependant and a judgement will need to be made daily.”

“Access will be maintained for residents to Orchard Gate through the works as necessary.”

“We again thank the residents and businesses for their continued patience, particularly those in close proximity to the surfacing works and apologise for the disturbance whilst we conclude our works in this area.”

Related links:

• MetroBus community website (Alun Griffiths)
• MetroBus construction in Bradley Stoke (The Journal)

N.B. Any updates received through the week, will be appended as comments on this post.

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