£23 million Portway upgrade begins Monday for 18 weeks
Bristol City Council starts paving and lighting work on the A4 Portway, affecting local streets and parking until summer 2027.
By Kaito Sokolov ·
Drivers and pedestrians in Bristol will face months of disruption starting Monday, November 2. Bristol City Council is beginning the latest phase of the A4 Portway redevelopment. The work focuses on the stretch between Bridge Valley Road and Hotwell Road. It stops just before the Mardyke Wharf Car Park near the Bristol Marina.
The project is scheduled to last approximately 18 weeks. Council crews will improve the pavement, kerbs, drainage, and street lighting. They will also resurface the road. New road markings will be painted overnight in the spring to minimize traffic impact.
Traffic management measures will affect several nearby streets. Drivers should expect changes on Granby Hill, Cabot Way, Bennett Way, and Cumberland Basin Road. Work on junctions will require signed diversions. Parking restrictions will be applied on a rolling program throughout the construction period.
Buses will not be fully diverted, though lane closures may affect bus lanes occasionally. Pedestrians and cyclists must follow signed diversions when paths are blocked. The full route of the Portway runs from the M5 at Avonmouth through the Avon Gorge to Hotwell Road.
More than £23 million has been committed to the entire redevelopment. The project aims to finish in summer 2027. The council states the goal is to reduce congestion and improve reliability for buses, walkers, and cyclists. This is the latest stage of a larger effort to upgrade this major transport route.
Councillor Jonathan Hucker, a Conservative representing Stockwood, criticized the cost at a meeting on September 29. He noted that the Portway opened in 1926 as the world's most expensive road. The original construction cost £800,000, which equals £42 million in today's money.
Hucker questioned how the current project compares to that 1926 benchmark. He suggested the finished road might feature the world's most expensive bus lanes. The council's work continues regardless, with the next 18 weeks marked by lane closures and infrastructure upgrades.
