Skip to content

Full closure of city bridge could be avoided

Southampton City Council An aerial view of the Itchen Bridge on a sunny day. The two-lane bridge over the River Itchen is in a suburban area with buildings in the foreground. On the far river bank you can see a mix of buildings and trees.Southampton City Council
The Itchen Bridge is a major route in and out of the city and used by thousands of motorists every day

Maintenance of a major city bridge may no longer require weeks of full closures under new plans, council bosses have confirmed.

Southampton City Council scrapped a scheduled eight-week closure of the Itchen Bridge last summer.

In recent months, officers have been exploring a new approach to the project.

It could now be delivered with lane closures and stop-go measures during the day, with overnight work where the road would be completely shut to motor vehicles.

A report to cabinet on Tuesday said the scheme, which has a £3.78m budget, is now set to be delivered in the 2025/26 financial year.

The project includes raising parapets and essential maintenance work.

In a statement to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, cabinet member for environment and transport Councillor Eamonn Keogh said: "Since our last update, we have been assessing the scope of works to secure best value, re-tendering works to ensure costs are competitive, trialling the proposed safety fencing and analysing highway network availability in Southampton and beyond.

"As part of these assessments, we are looking at the potential to avoid a complete closure of the bridge to motor vehicles over a sustained period.

"Instead, we are developing a programme of lane closures and stop-go vehicle control during the day to deliver the maintenance project through a combination of night-time working and day shifts."

Southampton City Council Councillor Eamonn Keogh wearing a black suit, white shirt and red tie. He is smiling at the camera.Southampton City Council
Councillor Eamonn Keogh said the bridge work would now take three months instead of the eight weeks originally planned

Keogh said the change in approach would mean the works would take three months rather than the previous programme of eight weeks.

Officers and highways partner Balfour Beatty Living Places are working on confirming the dates for works as early into 2025 as possible, with information to be released in "due course".

The report to cabinet, which detailed £17.8m of projects that would slip from the current capital programme into 2025/26, said the implications of loss of toll revenue while the bridge maintenance was taking place would be assessed.

You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.

More on this story
Related internet links