Most of Union Street in Bristol city centre will close on Tuesday, May 26, from 8am to 5pm for urgent patch repairs, forcing drivers and bus passengers onto lengthy diversions through the heart of the city. Bristol City Council said the road will be shut between its junctions with Wine Street and Broadmead while crews carry out the work.
The council said: “We need to temporarily close Union Street, between its junctions with Wine Street and Broadmead, for urgent patch repairs on Tuesday 26 May from 8am to 5pm”. It added: “There will be diversions in place. Thank you for your patience while we carry out these essential repairs.” Union Street runs from Castle Park to St James’ Park along the western edge of Broadmead, and the closure will affect a busy stretch of the city centre for most of the working day.
Westbound traffic will be diverted via The Pithay, All Saints Street, Nelson Street, Broadmead and Union Street. Eastbound traffic will be sent via Newgate, Broad Weir, Lower Castle Street, Castle Street, the A4044, Bond Street, The Haymarket, Bridewell Street, Nelson Street, Broadmead and Union Street. The Nelson Street and Broadmead bus gate will also be switched off for the duration of the closure.
First Bus said services 1, 2, 2a and 72 heading towards Park Street will divert via Newgate, Broad Weir, Lower Castle Street, Old Market Roundabout, Bond Street and Haymarket before resuming normal routes from Rupert Street. Those same services towards Temple Meads will keep to their normal routes. First Bus said services 3 and 4 from St Augustine’s Parade will divert via Christmas Street and Nelson Street to Union Street and end at the Union Street bus stop B12, while service 8 from St Augustine’s Parade will take the same diversion before returning to its normal route.
The repair work is separate from a wider overhaul of the roads around Broadmead that Bristol City Council is still preparing. The authority is working on its business case for submission to the West of England Combined Authority, and that larger project is not expected to start until next year. When it does begin, the plan would increase pedestrianised areas, add more than a kilometre of new separated cycle lanes and upgrade public transport routes in the area. For now, though, the immediate job is to keep a central Bristol route open again after the patch repairs are finished on Tuesday.
The temporary closure is a reminder that city-centre travel in Bristol is being reshaped in stages, not all at once. While the broader Broadmead upgrade is still at the planning stage, Tuesday’s work is a practical test of how much disruption the roads can absorb before the larger changes arrive next year.
