The Cleveland Bridge refurbishment project aims to ensure that one of Bath's major river bridges remains safe to use on one of our busiest through-routes, the A36.
The problem
Cleveland Bridge is almost 200 years old, and was originally built for pedestrians and horse-drawn vehicles. It now carries the A36, a major strategic highway to the South Coast. There is daily traffic of up to 17,000 vehicles on this route, including lorries and coaches which are much heavier than the bridge was designed for.
The bridge is a listed structure, and we need to protect its heritage value, as well as making sure it's safe to use for years to come. Surveys have identified that structural parts of the bridge are worn out, and need maintenance, repair or replacement.
Without this river crossing, all traffic would either need to go through the historic centre of Bath (where many roads have access and weight restriction protection) or divert to the east (making journeys longer, and increasing traffic pollution).
Our proposed solution
We plan to repair damage to the structure of the bridge and conserve its heritage value. The proposed refurbishment works include the following:
- Structural repairs to deck slabs (the base of the roadway)
- Structural repairs to masonry abutments (pillars at the ends of the bridge which support its weight)
- Repainting the footway beams
- Waterproofing
- Installing protective coating systems