News / New Cut
More than £8m needed for emergency repairs to New Cut walls
Three locations along the walls of the New Cut are now deemed as “emergency sites” and present “a very substantial risk” in the event of a collapse.
The three new emergency sites join 11 other “critical” sites along the 200-year-old channel.
Bristol City Council needs to spend an extra £8.2m to continue their programme of repairs and investigations at these locations, with a new report recommending £10m a year to be spent over the next five years to manage the ongoing risks as well as further long-term investment for decades to come.
is needed now More than ever
The report recommends that regional and central government should support the work.
The three newly identified areas all run alongside Coronation Road. They are the walls close to the Co-Op (pictured in the above photo) and near Bristol Metal Spraying, and the rock face next to Gaol Ferry Bridge.
Ed Plowden, chair of the transport & connectivity committee, said: “The collapse of the wall along Cumberland Road in 2020 was a real wake-up call.
“It is clear to see how much the river walls and rock faces along parts of the New Cut have deteriorated over time, especially after we removed a significant amount of vegetation along the river last year, as part of our ongoing monitoring works.
“We’ve already started a programme of stabilisation works to prevent further catastrophic collapses, including repairs near Bedminster Old Bridge and either side of Banana Bridge alongside York Road, as part of this phase of work.
“However, our latest inspections show that we need to plan in new emergency works to stabilise the riverbank along Commercial Road and seek funding to invest in further works.
“Some of our New Cut river walls are more than 200 years old, and they haven’t been maintained properly over that time because of lack of resources and investment going back many years.
“The river walls have been steadily deteriorating and without appropriate funding, there is a risk of more collapses, which could lead to road closures, flooding, injury or worse.”
Bristol City Council is responsible for the upkeep of the New Cut – photo: Martin Booth
Plowden added: “Having the evidence from our extensive monitoring work shows the scale of the problem.
“The reality is that we will need to stabilise many more areas of the riverbank along the New Cut in the coming years, which is a huge undertaking that will require significant investment.
“This is an important first step in setting out a long-term plan to safeguard our historic harbour and New Cut for future generations.”
Neither the jail nor ferry remains, but we still have Gaol Ferry Bridge overlooking the rock face through which the New Cut was dug – photo: Martin Booth
Main photo: Martin Booth
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