Bristol Harbourside walking route to reopen to cars

Avon Crescent has been closed to vehicles since 2020

A popular Bristol Harbourside walking route will reopen to cars in September, three years after it was temporarily shut.

Avon Crescent was closed to traffic as part of the repairs to the Chocolate Path and Cumberland Road in 2020.

It has since become popular with walkers and cyclists, and the pavement will be widened to compensate for the jump in footfall.

Bristol City Council said the road will reopen on 4 September.

This is the same date when the nearby Chocolate Path footpath is reportedly due to reopen, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

After roadblocks were installed at the southern end of Avon Crescent, the route became increasingly popular with people walking and cycling around the Harbourside.

The council said that Avon Crescent will have less traffic than before it was shut due to a bus gate planned for Cumberland Road which will block general traffic travelling eastwards.

Plans to reopen the road previously sparked road safety fears.

Since it was temporarily closed, the road has become popular with walkers and cyclists

Only buses, taxis, cycles, e-scooters and emergency vehicles will be able to enter the central areas of the city using Cumberland Road, a Bristol City Council spokesperson said.

Avon Crescent could face further changes in the longer term as part of the Western Harbour regeneration project.

Local councillors criticised the decision to reopen the road, citing a lack of public consultation.

Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Green councillor Patrick McAllister, who represents Harbourside and Hotwells, said: "I'm disappointed that this step is being taken without community consultation.

"A planning application that would have reopened Avon Crescent was withdrawn in the face of local opposition.

"It is inappropriate in my view for this to suddenly be announced regardless."

Temporary closure

At a public meeting late in October 2022, Bristol mayor Marvin Rees denied the council was planning to reopen the road.

A spokesperson for Bristol City Council said: "The road closure and planning condition from the metrobus scheme are separate issues.

"Avon Crescent was closed under a Temporary Traffic Regulation Order (TTRO), put in place to ensure the safe operation of the road network during the Cumberland Road stabilisation works.

"Avon Crescent will therefore reopen when the works are complete on 4 September and the TTRO cannot be extended for a longer amount of time."

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