ROADWORKS on the Avon Ring Road which have been underway since February are set to finish before Christmas.
South Gloucestershire Council says the project to upgrade paths, cycle lanes and pedestrian crossings between the Wick Wick roundabout north of Downend and Coldharbour Lane, next to UWE’s Frenchay campus, will be complete by mid-December.
A spokesperson said all lane restrictions and closures, including at the junction of Bromley Heath Road and Quakers Road, will be cleared.
New 40mph speed limit signs will be put up on the stretch of the A4174 where the work has been carried out.
The reduced speed limit was originally intended only for the westbound carriageway, next to the new paths, but will now be in force in both directions. The council says it is intended “to make using the improved paths safer and to meet road design requirements”.
In total the council says it has improved more than 4km (two and a half miles) of cycle lanes and footpaths.
The work cost £15.3 million, paid for by the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement, funding allocated by the government in 2022 for infrastructure improvement and administered by the West of England Combined Authority.
By mid-November the council said the improvements had been “substantially completed”, with ring road resurfacing and traffic light works at the Quakers Road junction the last jobs to finish.
A new northbound lane to connect the Wick Wick roundabout to the new Badminton Road bridge over the M4, along with two southbound lanes from the bridge to the roundabout, will be completed in conjunction with National Highways’ bridge replacement project, which is due to finish next spring.
As well as new paths, widened existing paths, resurfacing and new pedestrian crossings, the project includes an extra left-hand lane for traffic using Coldharbour Lane.
The council says the project is part of wider ‘sustainable travel’ plans to make walking, cycling/wheeling and public transport the “preferred way of getting around – especially for shorter journeys”.
Cabinet councillor Sean Rhodes said: “We want to provide people with more travel options to help encourage a shift away from car use, reduce congestion and emissions and improve air quality. We would like to thank residents and road users for their patience whilst we have delivered this scheme.”
Metro Mayor Helen Godwin said the project will “make a big difference to people’s everyday journeys”, adding: “Getting the basics right by fixing our region’s roads and bridges, and improving public transport and walking and cycling options, will lay the foundations for a better transport system overall for the West of England.”