THOUSANDS of motorists were diverted through Hambrook, Downend, Emersons Green, Warmley and Wick as the M4 was shut for a weekend.
The motorway was closed in both directions between the Bristol and Bath junctions, at Hambrook and Tormarton, from 7pm on October 18 until 6am on October 21, as part of the project to replace the A432 Badminton Road bridge.
National Highways said the motorway usually carries up to 4,000 vehicles an hour at weekends, and had warned drivers in advance to avoid the area if possible during the closure.
Throughout the weekend there were queues not only on the diversion route – along the M32, A4174, A420 and A46 – but on other roads in the area.
Although National Highways appealed to drivers to stick to the signposted diversions and not follow alternatives suggested by smartphones or satnavs, there were long queues on Westerleigh Road between Emersons Green and Dodington, with traffic approaching the A46 backed up for two miles beyond Codrington at some points.
People also reported queues on Siston Hill, Goose Green and through Pucklechurch during the weekend.
The bridge next to the Wick Wick roundabout, which carried the main road between Bristol and Yate, has been closed to motor traffic since last summer after inspectors found “structural failures” during a routine inspection.
The concrete and steel bridge was built in 1966 and was designed to last for 120 years.
National Highways, which is responsible for the bridge, has drawn up plans to remove it in March or April next year, with a replacement due to open in early 2026.
But before the bridge can be removed the utility supplies which currently run through it – water and gas mains, electricity and fibre optic cables – have to be re-routed under the motorway.
People living near the works were warned to expect noise as workers used a 55-ton chainsaw to cut through the road surface, before digging out trenches to bury ducts for the utilities, then resurfacing the motorway.
Up to 70 people worked in shifts on the project over the course of the weekend.
Utility companies will then have several months to move the pipes and cables into the new ducts.
National Highways route manager Sean Walsh said: “There’s no good time to do something like this.
“We carefully plan our schemes to limit any inconvenience, but sometimes it’s not possible to carry out the work that’s needed without a closure.”
Signs warning of the closure were put up as far away as London, Cardiff and Manchester.
South Gloucestershire Council adjusted the timing of the lights at junction 1 of the M32 and at Deanery roundabout in Warmley to prioritise traffic using the diversion, and monitored traffic flows to adjust sequencing at other locations as required.
There will be a second weekend closure for the bridge to be demolished and a third to install the 55 metre steel supports for the new bridge.
Mr Walsh said that since the bridge was closed a lot of work had been going on behind the scenes to design its replacement, liaise with utility companies and councils.
He said: “Work hasn’t stopped at all. It’s not all about digging a hole – that’s the easy bit.”
Mr Walsh said he understood people’s frustrations at the length of time the bridge was out of use.
The agency had listened to suggestions about installing a temporary bridge but, having considered the options, decided demolishing and replacing the bridge with a new permanent structure was judged to be the quickest and most economical approach.
He said: “We will do everything we can to expedite it.
“What people see when they use a bridge is a flat surface but what they don’t see is that every bridge is different and you need to understand the conditions.
“You can’t just go to Bridges R Us, and most of the work you have to do for this bridge would have to be done for a temporary bridge.”
