TRAFFIC UPDATE
Kepax Walking and Cycling Bridge
About The Project
Improving walking and cycling routes around the county is a priority for Worcestershire County Council and Worcester City Council.
The scheme to deliver a new walking and cycling bridge across the River Severn in Worcester was approved by the Council’s Planning and Regulatory Committee on 28 September 2021.
The bridge will run from Gheluvelt Park, to the east of the river, to the Kepax site in St John’s, to the west.
The bridge will be a welcome addition to the popular riverside route. For the first time it will allow users to enjoy a figure-of-eight route along the River Severn, from the very well used Diglis bridge (which has had over 3 million users since it was opened in 2010) in the south to the recently refurbished Sabrina Bridge near the city centre and this new bridge in the north and back again.
The scheme will give the opportunity for people to walk and cycle much more quickly between the Henwick Park area (and further afield like Hallow and Broadheath) on the west and Barbourne and Claines in the east. In addition, improvements to the existing walking and cycling network will connect residents via the National Cycle Network.
These include:
- a new access path provided over the Kepax site to get to the bridge
- providing pedestrian/cycle links from the bridge to the National Cycle Network, route 45
- improvements to links on both sides of the river including measures such as signage, removal of “pinch-points” and surfacing where appropriate
The scheme will encourage the use of alternative modes of transport for journeys around the city generally, helping to reduce levels of congestion, improve safety and air quality and promote health and wellbeing.
The bridge would be a cable stayed structure, the main span would be supported by cables connected to a single tower or “pylon” on the east side of the river. The final details are yet to be fully agreed. Once the bridge is built, the intention is that the bridge is to be open 24/7.
Other Considerations
Additional dog waste and litter bins
These will be considered as part of the review process and additional bins will be provided as deemed necessary.
Environment
A small number of trees, mostly on the west side of the river, have been removed to accommodate the bridge, however, this has been kept to a minimum and the work was supervised by an ecologist. There are no plans to remove any more trees and replacement planting will be carried out nearby.
The bridge lands on a former landfill site, however, the bridge and access path have been designed in such a way as to have minimal impact on the site during the construction phase and it allows for the type of “settlement” movements that can occur on sites of this kind. As now, gas levels will continue to be monitored by Worcestershire County Council.
Much effort is taken to protect local wildlife, signs will be in place on the junction of Pope Iron Road and Waterworks Road and at the site exit to warn drivers of swans on the road, works will not take place in the river during fish migration season and intrusive works will not take place near to where animals are nesting.
Lighting
The bridge will be lit by under rail lighting and there will be low level LED lights installed on the west of the river. All lighting is designed to be sympathetic to local residents and wildlife.
Local residents
Every effort would be made to ensure that any impact would be kept to a minimum by, for example, restricting delivery and work times and not allowing contractors’ vehicles to be parked in residential areas.
Nearby areas
There are no plans to open a park or play area, there would be a wide path crossing the landfill site between the bridge and Horsford Road only with no access to the Kepax site outside of this path.
Parking
Parking will be monitored on both sides of the river and a number of measures could be put in place, if necessary, to combat unsafe or inconsiderate parking. A resident parking scheme has recently been considered on the Barbourne side of the river, and we are investigating more effective use of local car parks.
Recycling Centre
The access road would still be closed when the Recycling Centre is not open, however, there would be a “bypass” for pedestrians and cyclists to afford access to and from the bridge when the gates are closed.
Safety
There is no reason to believe that provision of the bridge would lead to an increase in anti-social behaviour and there were no reported increases in anti-social behaviour when Diglis Bridge opened, indeed, an increase in legitimate footfall often leads to a reduction in anti-social behaviour; nevertheless, the police were consulted as part of the planning process.
We are currently investigating the provision of CCTV in partnership with colleagues at Worcester City Council.
Working over or near to a river
Flooding is taken into consideration, with the site liable to flooding. A plan is in place to move equipment to higher ground if needed and continue to operate on site where possible. Certain work will be planned for certain times of the year to reduce the risk of flooding on the programme. There are also restrictions to working over a river, including taking into consideration fish migration season.
We Are A Registered Considerate Constructors Site
Visit Considerate Constructors Scheme (ccscheme.org.uk) for more information.
Project Newsletters
Newsletters will appear here, shortly after publication.
- Newsletter 8 October 2024
- Newsletter 7 October 2024
- Newsletter 6 August 2024
- Newsletter 5 July 2024
- Newsletter 4 June 2024
- Newsletter 3 April 2024
- Newsletter 2 January 2024
- Newsletter 1 August 2023
Videos
Kepax Bridge Lift 2024
Kepax Artistic Render
News
The most up-to-date news and stories from the site can be found here!
23rd August 2024
Work has been continuing on the bridge, with the new railings being installed, the final curved section of these will be completed in the upcoming weeks. Specialist contractors will then be on site to install lighting on the bridge.
Additional work has also being taking place including; adjustments to the cable ties to ensure the bridge is aligned properly as per the design and painting.
Work is also underway on preparations for landscaping works on both sides of the river. On the east side at Gheluvelt Park, stone and ground material is being removed ready for further ground work for the new landscaping design. Material removed from site will be recycled or reused on other building projects.
Our teams have also removed the old wooden boardwalk in front of the old pump house building and installed a hard surface footpath, making it more accessible for wheelchairs, mobility scooters and families with prams or buggies.
5th July 2024
The Kepax active travel bridge project in Worcester has reached another key milestone with the installation of the final bridge deck pieces and tie bars connecting the east and west side over the River Severn.
Over a period of two weeks the teams installed six bridge deck pieces weighing approximately 12 tonnes each and fixed the remaining six tie bars in place to ensure bridge stability. Final welding and painting works were also completed during this time.
Positive collaboration between our project team and multiple subcontractors on site enabled the lift and installations to be completed safely and to schedule.
With this milestone achieved the team are moving forward with the next phase of works to install the railings along the bridge deck and surface treatments. Groundworks for the new landscaping on the east side of the river will also be underway in the coming weeks.
It hasn’t all been about the bridge though! On the east side of the river, new cycle storage areas have been installed opposite the old pump works building. On the west side at Horsford Road, we have been installing drainage and kerbing for the new access road.
Project staff have also visited Northwick Manor Primary School to talk to year five students about the project, including how we are building the bridge and protecting the environment whilst we do so.
7th December 2023
Some sections of the bridge have now started to be lifted into place. The piers and the pylon have recently been installed, with more lifts scheduled over the coming weeks.
There will then be a break for Christmas, with further sections of the bridge lifted into position in the new year.
All dates are dependent on suitable weather conditions.
6th November 2023
Three pylon sections, which have been on quite a journey, will soon be arriving on the site where Kepax Bridge is being constructed in Worcester.
The steel pylons, weighing 15 tonnes each and measuring 10 metres in height, are being delivered to site on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, before they are welded together.
The pylons started their journey in Ireland, where they were constructed by Jamestown, before arriving in Scunthorpe to be spray painted by Jack Tighe and then transported to the Kepax Bridge site.
Multiple sections of the bridge have been arriving over the past few weeks, with more due to arrive in the coming weeks, before they are lifted into position over the river, later this year.
27th October 2023
Large steel curved sections of bridge have arrived on the site where Kepax Bridge is being built.
The sections of bridge, which weigh 15 tonnes each, have been arriving on the back of large lorries over the past few weeks, with more due to arrive over the next few months.
Recently, the above ground structure works have been completed and the areas for the cranes and storage area for bridge beam sections have been prepared.
Further sections of the bridge will be delivered over the next few weeks, with the cranes set to arrive later in the year to undertake the bridge lifts. These dates are dependent on suitable weather conditions and may be subject to change.
Moving forward, three pylon sections of 15 tonnes each and 10 metres in height, will be delivered and welded together for lifting and a further 10 straight sections weighing 16 tonnes and 12 metres in length, will be delivered and lifted straight from the lorries into place.
29th September 2023
Work is well underway on the new path and cycleway, which includes connection to the Severn Way.
All above ground concreting works are complete, with preparations now taking place on both sides of the river to install the crane mats and raised areas for bridge beam storage.
Delivery of the cranes and bridge beams will take place during October and November, with the crane lifts planned to begin late October/early November, subject to the weather.
4th August 2023
Works on Kepax Bridge are progressing well, with structures beginning to rise from the foundations.
The construction of bridge has recently focused on the structure bases, in readiness for the installation of the main bridge span starting later this year.
Most of the work so far has been underground, but new photos released today, show how the works are progressing.
Sections of the main bridge will start to be delivered during September and will be assembled on site. The cranes will arrive on site in October to undertake the bridge lift. These dates may be subject to change.
24th March 2023
Piling Rig Movement – Date Change
Following flooding in the lower corner of the riverside section of Gheluvelt Park, where we were supposed to be piling, we have been unable to undertake a weeks’ worth of work in the area which has subsequently caused a delay to us moving the rig out of the park. We will now be moving the rig out on Wednesday 5th April instead of Monday 27th March. The same restrictions will be in place on the new date and across the same route – Waterworks Road on to Pope Iron Road, Pitchcroft Lane (with an alternate route along Sandys Road), Barbourne Walk, Somers’ Road and on to Barbourne Road. This means there will be no kerb-side parking available along the route whilst the rig is removed. The Clearway operates for the full 24 hours, although the movement itself should only take a short period of time. We will have banksmen walking in front of the vehicle to knock doors and move vehicles, if necessary, with a vehicle removal company in place should we not be able to move cars via door knocking.
13th March 2023
Thank You
Firstly, we would like to offer our sincere thanks for your compliance with the clearway order for our piling rig movement on Monday 13th March. The movements were all undertaken successfully and enabled us to set up the rig in preparation for the piling works.
We would also like to thank all of those that attended our Meet the Team events in March! We engaged with a total of 157 members of the public over the two sessions.
2nd March 2023
Two information events are taking place later this month to provide more details about the construction of a new walking and cycling bridge in Worcester.
Kepax Bridge is being built over the River Severn and works are already well underway. A site compound and offices have been installed in Gheluvelt Park and next to Hallow Recycling Centre on the opposite side of the river, as well as preparatory works to pave the way for the main construction work.
Worcestershire County Council has organised two drop-in information events, which will enable people to have a look at images and a computer generation of the final bridge design, as well as ask questions of officers in attendance from the County Council and contractors.
The drop-in sessions will take place on:
Thursday 9 March, The Pumphouse Environment Centre, 2:00pm to 8:00pm
Thursday 16 March, outside Tesco Express, Martley Road, 2:00pm to 8:00pm
4th October 2022
Over the next few weeks, the site compounds and associated offices will be put into place in Gheluvelt Park and adjacent to the Hallow Recycling Centre, ahead of work getting fully underway in November.
22nd September 2022
Kepax Bridge scheme takes a huge step forward
Kepax Bridge is now able to progress, following approval by the Worcestershire County Council Cabinet earlier today (22 September).
The Cabinet agreed to authorise the award of the main construction contract and requested the Council amend the capital budget to enable works to commence on the construction of the new bridge later this year.
Building on the success of Sabrina Bridge and Diglis Bridge, Worcestershire County Council and Worcester City Council are working in partnership to provide this new walking and cycling bridge over the River Severn.
The bridge will run from Gheluvelt Park to the east of the river to the Kepax site in St John’s, to the west, providing improved cycle and pedestrian connectivity to the north of Worcester City.
It will be the same width as other shared-use bridges in the city such as Diglis, Hams Way, Broomhall Way and Crookbarrow Way.
26th January 2022
Kepax Bridge scheme takes a huge step forward
Kepax Bridge is now able to progress, following approval by the Worcestershire County Council Cabinet earlier today (22 September).
The Cabinet agreed to authorise the award of the main construction contract and requested the Council amend the capital budget to enable works to commence on the construction of the new bridge later this year.
Building on the success of Sabrina Bridge and Diglis Bridge, Worcestershire County Council and Worcester City Council are working in partnership to provide this new walking and cycling bridge over the River Severn.
The bridge will run from Gheluvelt Park to the east of the river to the Kepax site in St John’s, to the west, providing improved cycle and pedestrian connectivity to the north of Worcester City.
It will be the same width as other shared-use bridges in the city such as Diglis, Hams Way, Broomhall Way and Crookbarrow Way.
28th September 2021
The planning application submitted for another major improvement to the walking and cycling infrastructure in the county has been given the go ahead.
The scheme to deliver Kepax Bridge was approved by the County’s Planning and Regulatory Committee today (28th September).
The bridge aims to provide improved cycle and pedestrian connectivity to the north of Worcester City and to enhance links along the riverside.
Building on the success of Sabrina Bridge and Diglis Bridge, Worcestershire County Council and Worcester City Council are working in partnership to provide this new walking and cycling bridge over the River Severn between Gheluvelt Park and Kepax.
It will be the same width as other shared-use bridges in the city such as Diglis, Hams Way, Broomhall Way and Crookbarrow Way.
6th July 2021
At today’s Planning and Regulatory Committee meeting, members voted to defer a decision on the application for Kepax Bridge in Worcester.
The committee requested more information about wider connectivity to the bridge which will be presented to them at a future Planning and Regulatory Committee meeting.
12th March 2021
Walking and cycling routes in the county could get a boost at Worcestershire County Council’s next Cabinet meeting, if plans to progress two bridges are given the green light.
Kepax Bridge in Worcester and Hampton Bridge in Evesham are scheduled to be discussed at the meeting next Thursday (18 March)
Scheme drawings
Please use the links below to access the PDF General Arrangement drawings.
Meet the Team
Contact the Site
Kate Hamilton-Border is our Public Liaison Officer for the Kepax Foot and Cycle Bridge project and will deal with any enquiries you have during construction of the project.
Contact Details
E: kepaxenquiries@alungriffiths.co.uk
P: 01873 771782
*Calls to this number are charged at national call rates and included in inclusive minute plans from landlines and mobiles
FAQs
This will be updated as questions arise
Project
Contact
01873 771782