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May 2022
News
Gipsy Patch reopened both ways … What next?
T
he two-way reopening of Gipsy Patch Lane on the morning of Sunday 24th April has allowed traffic to pass under the railway line in an eastbound direction (towards Little Stoke) for the first time in more than two years. The road had been subject to full and partial closures since March 2020, to allow the replacement of a narrow Victorian-era railway bridge and road widening works to create space for new bus lanes. There had earlier been some partial relief for motorists when one-way (westbound only) passage under the new railway bridge was opened up in September 2021. Motor vehicles can now pass along the full length of Gipsy Patch Lane in both directions – westbound towards the A38 Gloucester Road, and eastbound towards Little Stoke, Stoke
L-r: Two-way under the bridge for the first time in over two years; New eastbound bus lane opposite Stokers public house
Gifford and Bradley Stoke. All side road junctions, including Titan Road (leading into the Horizon 38 business park), have also reopened to traffic. Ahead of the recent two-way reopening, motorists had to endure a two-week full closure of Gipsy Patch Lane so that road resurfacing could be carried out. South Gloucestershire Council says the recent resurfacing
work involved “reconstructing all the asphalt layers in the road, not simply the top layer, to make the road fit for purpose for years to come”. More than 1,900 tonnes of material were removed, and during the asphalting operation over 200 tonnes of material were laid each day. Road widening work continues to be carried out west of the railway bridge (Rolls-Royce side), and to enable this work narrow lanes will be in place along this stretch of the carriageway.
More road closures
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The latest version of the project construction programme (dated March 2022) shows ‘completion and resurfacing’ on the west side being carried out in August and September. This resurfacing will require a further closure of Gipsy Patch Lane, the dates for which will be announced in due course. It is also likely that Station Road will need to be fully or partially closed whilst remedial works are carried out on the railway embankment near the northeast corner of the bridge. This work is expected to take around six weeks; the start date is yet to be confirmed. The main construction work for the Cribbs Patchway MetroBus Extension (CPME) scheme is due to complete in September this year. Other work, such as the installation of bus shelters and iPoints, along with landscaping, will be completed in the autumn. ● southglos.gov.uk/CPmetrobus
Resurfacing other roads
The council has announced plans to resurface a number of other roads in the immediate area over the summer. These are: • Gipsy Patch Lane between the Little Stoke Lane junction and the Hatchet Road roundabout (both sides of the carriageway). Due to take place in May. • Gipsy Patch Lane service road (between Bush Avenue and the Stokers pub). Due to take place in June. • Smithcourt Drive (a section adjacent to Gipsy Patch Lane). Due to take place in July. • Stoke Lane (between Amberley Road and Braydon Avenue). Due to take place in September. Further details and precise dates will be announced in due course.
MetroBus services
Once complete, the £57 million Cribbs Patchway MetroBus Extension (CPME) will provide a route for fast and reliable bus services between Bristol Parkway and The Mall at Cribbs Causeway, via the Brabazon mixed-use development that is being built on the former Filton Airfield. Officers at the West of England Combined Authority (Weca) had previously expressed doubts about whether it would prove possible to find a bus company to operate a MetroBus service over the new route, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on bus patronage. Operators were said to be “cautious about committing to a commercial offer” and it was
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