New Bristol link road shortlist revealed

Two possible routes have been shortlisted for a £40 million link road to help ease traffic congestion and unlock millions of pounds of new investment in South Bristol.

The planned single carriageway road would link the A370 with the dual carriageway at Hengrove Way.

Transport cabinet councillors in the Bristol area have told highways experts to press ahead with the technical work, which must be done before a funding bid can be submitted to the Government.

People are expected to be consulted for their views in December or January before a bid is put before the Department for Transport (DfT).

A link road has been on the drawing board for more than a decade, with villagers in Barrow Gurney, which sits on a road used by drivers to cut between the two main roads, among those campaigning for the new road.

John Savage, chief executive of Business West, which represents regional businesses, said: "A link road that opens up south Bristol has been a vital ingredient we've needed for transport and economic growth for 50 years. Any delays in making this link available would be robbing people and future generations of a better chance of getting a job."

He said another key factor was to help ease access to Bristol International Airport. And if Bristol City FC wins permission for a new stadium, then a link road would make it easier for fans to reach the new ground.

Property consultant Ned Cussen said: "The link road is vital in terms of its importance to the regeneration of South Bristol."

David Bishop, Bristol City Council's strategic transport director, said he wanted to see the new road go ahead. He told a meeting of the West of England Partnership – a body representing the four councils in the former Avon area – that he wanted the bid submitted before the annual DfT deadline next March.

Karuna Tharmananthar, senior officer in charge of the Link Road project, said they had not identified exact routes for the proposed road. But our diagram shows the two corridors from which the route is expected to be chosen.

It would be built in two phases – the first from the A370 to the A38 and the second from the A38 to the roundabout at Cater Road, Bishopsworth.

The first option (known as the inner route) would see the road run from the Long Ashton bypass near the Bristol end. It then runs north of the tip at Yanley and meets the A38 on the Bristol side of the Town and Country Lodge Hotel.

The second phase runs south of Highridge Green and on to the Cater Road roundabout.

The second option (the outer route) starts from the Long Ashton bypass at the top of the hill before it becomes a dual carriageway and runs north of Woodspring Golf Course and meets the A38 much nearer the hotel. The second phase takes virtually the same corridor as the inner route.

The inner route is more expensive (£41.1m) as an estimated £5.3m would be spent on an underpass to cross the main railway line. But the cheaper outer route at £37.4m runs through more green belt and land purchase costs are higher.

The proposed routes run near Woodspring Golf Club but course manager Graham Henson said they did not want a new road to affect the course. He said: "We're a thriving golf course and we'd resist any move that would affect us."

A bus rapid transit system – bendy-buses running on a dedicated track – is expected to run alongside the new road. But instead of joining up with the A370, buses would probably run to the Long Ashton park-and-ride site.

Last year the West of England Partnership said it was considering a bid to build a link road as part of a larger South Bristol Ring Road, eventually joining the Avon Ring Road at the Hicks Gate roundabout, Keynsham.