News / roadworks
Traders frustrated with roadworks on popular shopping street
Traders on a major shopping street are annoyed at Bristol City Council for starting roadworks during what they say is the “busiest” time of the year.
A section of Gloucester Road outside The Fish Shop has been dug up and barricaded, restricting parking access for many customers who frequent the street.
While the roadworks are seen as important, owner of the fishmongers Dan Stern, feels they could have been done in January when “everyone’s quiet and there’s no trade”.
A section of the road outside Dan Stern’s shop on Gloucester Road has been dug up as part of ongoing roadworks
“The question is who in their right mind would have thought of doing this at this time of the year,” said Dan, when speaking to Bristol24/7.
Weeks before the roadworks started in early December, some shop owners on the road received a letter from the council, while others were also informed in person by a council representative.
Dan said: “A guy came from the council who said they were starting works. He seemed a little surprised himself that they were doing it at Christmas.”
The council representative assured Dan that the work would happen in “stages” and “wouldn’t be too much of an inconvenience”.
However, with about a 200 to 300m stretch of the road now dug up, customers are struggling to find a convenient spot for parking.
A section of Gloucester Road outside Dan’s shop was dug up in early December
David Pavon, who owns El Colmado, a few doors down from the fishmongers, said that he and other traders on the street had been asking for these crucial repairs “for years”, however this was not the time to start them.
“I don’t know who was the clever person in the council who decided these works should be done during Christmas,” said David. “I don’t know if it’s a lack of knowledge or a way to punish small businesses on Gloucester Road.”
He continued: “The reality is that everyone in the council talks about this being the longest street in Europe of independent shops, but then we see things like this.
“There’s never enough parking. And when we really need it, which is Christmas, they decide to start doing some roadworks.”
The roadworks David was told would go on for nine weeks.
David Pavon, owner of El Colmado, said traders on the street had been asking for these repairs to be made for several years
Further down the road is Totally Toys, a toy shop which has been trading from the same site on Gloucester Road since 1988. Jane Miller, the shop’s co-owner, said that unlike other traders up the road they didn’t receive a letter.
“What the council aren’t actually understanding is that it has an impact on all of us,” Jane told Bristol24/7. “If it affects one part of the street, it affects everyone.”
Jane added that any time people see “an obstacle” in their way, more so during Christmas time, it might restrict their desire to visit a shop.
Even though Jane Miller’s toy shop is further down the street, she says the roadworks affect everyone in some way
Jane continued: “Lack of parking is a problem anyway. So if you take that away from people, and also the pavements, people avoid that area.”
Starting roadworks across the city including those near the Hippodrome, so close to Christmas, Jane said, was completely “ridiculous”.
Dan said that many customers had been saying that they now had to park “miles away” to get to his fish shop
He continued: “The problem is not just this stretch. It creates congestion here, but then also further down the road. If there’s less parking here, there’s more people parking down there.
“So then the other shops that aren’t having their pavement or their roads taken up at this time, they’re going to have a knock-on problem.”
Councillor Ed Plowden, chair of the transport and connectivity committee, said: “We understand the concerns and frustrations raised by local residents and businesses regarding the timing of these essential safety and accessibility works, particularly as they fall over the busy festive season.
“We remain committed to managing the works as carefully as possible to mitigate disruption for residents, shoppers, and businesses and have a dedicated supervisor on-site working closely with the contractor to minimise further impact.”
All photos: Karen Johnson
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