Itchen Bridge Maintenance Project: Details of traffic management

This summer, Southampton City Council is undertaking what will be the most significant programme of maintenance works to the Itchen Bridge crossing since it first opened

The maintenance project will ensure that the bridge remains in good working order and will include drainage improvements, resurfacing and the installation of additional safety features. Details of the works and detailed implementation programme are still being finalised and will be released in due course.

In order to safely carry out the works, the Itchen Bridge will be closed to motor vehicles in the summer for approximately eight weeks. Dates will be announced once the plans are confirmed.

Diversions for local drivers and buses will be confirmed in due course. People coming into the city centre from further afield will be encouraged to continue on the M27 to J5 or J3, or to use alternative methods of travel. The Itchen Bridge will remain open to pedestrians and cyclists for the duration of the works, but it will be necessary to follow signed diversions around active work areas.

The Ring Road improvement works will have been completed and the temporary one-way system on the Ring Road brought to an end prior to the works starting on the Itchen Bridge.

Councillor Eamonn Keogh, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said:

“We fully appreciate the disruption that the closure of the Itchen Bridge to motor vehicles will cause and apologise for the inconvenience, however there is no other way to undertake this maintenance and it must be completed to ensure the health of the Itchen Bridge going forward.

“To mitigate what we can, we have chosen to undertake the majority of the works over the summer holiday when the bridge is not as busy as other times, and the weather is more likely to be favourable. We will also maintain pedestrian and cycle crossings, and we will be deploying multiple work teams to complete the works as quickly and safely as possible.”

Please visit our Itchen Bridge Maintenance Project page for further information and future updates.