Works due to start on Bitterne Road East improvement scheme
Improvement works funded by the Department for Transport’s Active Travel Fund are set to start on Bitterne Road East on Monday 17 February 2025
The scheme will deliver a number of changes that will improve the road surface, highway safety, local peoples’ access to buses and the local environment for people walking, wheeling and cycling.
These will include:
- A new signalised crossing on Bitterne Road East nearby to the junction with Somerset Avenue
- Widening and renewal of the signalised crossing at Commercial Street
- Creation of a continuous cycle link between Somerset Avenue and Bitterne District Centre utilising a short length of Bitterne Road East, Keynsham Road and the Bitterne Road East service road
- 20mph speed limit on Bitterne Road East service road, Milbury Crescent, Keynsham Road, Bath Road, and their side roads
- Drainage improvements at Commercial Street and Somerset Avenue
- Resurfacing sections of Bitterne Road East and the service road
- New planting alongside Bitterne Road East
- New wayfinding signage for people walking, wheeling and cycling
The design of the scheme has been significantly amended following survey work, investigations and feedback from local people received in the public consultation in Autumn 2023, for example, the originally proposed changes to the junction with Bath Road were not taken forward and will not be implemented. The evolved scheme was then consulted on in November 2024.
In order to manage the highway network efficiently, we have considered several ways to deliver these changes, however, to enable the safe installation of these new enhancements as quickly as possible, Bitterne Road East will need to be closed for seven weeks from 17 February. Local people have been written to with alternative routes to their roads, and these are also available on the Bitterne Road East project page on Connecting Southampton. A signed diversion route will be in place for through traffic.
Councillor Eamonn Keogh, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said:
“I would like to thank people for their patience while these works take place and apologise for any inconvenience. There are a number of different aspects to this scheme which we have taken the opportunity to deliver in one go as this is the most efficient and least disruptive option in the long run.”
“I would also like to thank everyone who gave us their views on the scheme through the public consultations which, together with other assessments and engineering survey work has helped guide the evolution of the scheme to this stage where it is ready to be delivered.”
This scheme will deliver improvements in this important local travel corridor that support the delivery of the Local Transport Plan: Connected Southampton 2040.
