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Date set for Bristol's Bridge Valley Road to reopen

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Bridge Valley Road
Image caption,

The road has been closed since March 2010 because of safety fears

A busy commuter route in Bristol which was closed last March amid safety fears over a 30ft-high (10m) retaining wall is to reopen in June.

Bridge Valley Road, which links the zoo to the Portway, was initially shut for four months but in September a council report said repairs could cost 拢2m.

Liberal Democrat deputy leader of Bristol City Council, Simon Cook, said the road would "definitely" reopen.

"[The closure] has been really bad news for a lot of people," he said.

Councillor Cook, who represents the Clifton East ward, added that many people had been concerned the road would never reopen.

"It has been really really bad for commuters and the people of Clifton so we are really pleased this is to happen.

'Fault line'

"The work in Bridge Valley Road is very complex - it is actually pinning the rock face back which should have been done in the 1920s when the road was built.

"We'd rather get it right and make sure we take the time that is needed to do it properly so it's not necessary to close it again in another 10 years."

A cabinet meeting in September looked at the options available with the installation of "stitching bars" the preferred repair method.

It said the bars would tie the retaining wall to the rock face and stabilise a fault line beneath the surface.

Wire mesh would be installed over the bars to reduce the visual impact to the surrounding Avon Gorge.

The report also considered other options which included the permanent closure of Bridge Valley Road to traffic.

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