Bristol bridge closure having big impact on businesses

Businesses in Bristol's restaurant district say the closure of a nearby pedestrian bridge has hit trade hard.

Wapping Wharf businesses say they are being affected by a drop in visitors since Gaol Ferry Bridge closed for repairs in August.

Restaurant Woky Ko cited the bridge as part of the reason it closed on the site and Better Food's Phil Haughton said trade was down about 30%.

Bristol City council has been approached for comment.

"We used to be a thoroughfare and now we have become a cul-de-sac," Mr Haughton said.

The council has said the bridge will be closed for six to nine months, while rotten timbers and structural steelwork are replaced and stonework is replaced.

Shutting the crossing means people wanting to visit Wapping Wharf from the other side of the River Avon face an extra journey of about 25 minutes on foot and 10 minutes by bicycle.

"It has had a big impact on trade. It is hard for everyone with the cost of living crisis on everyone's mind and then you have this on top of it," said Mr Haughton.

"I'm so grateful for the number of people going around the diversion to make the effort to still come and shop here. We just need a lot more of them."

The founder of Better Food said the work had cut off the supply of business from Southville and traders were anxious about their future.

"It makes you feel anxious. They said it will be six to nine months but it feels like it will take longer than that. A lot of people are playing with things like opening hours and staff were trying not to make redundancies," he said.

"A lot of people are worried, they are really up against it after Covid and now this. Especially in hospitality. I wouldn't be surprised at all if quite lot of businesses have to pack up after Christmas. I think early next year could be a real struggle."

Mr Haughton called for a temporary bridge to be put in place during the works but the council said that was not possible due to the necessary road closures needed and costs.

He said regular communication from the council to businesses over the schedule of and projected finish date had not been forthcoming.

"The thing is the bridge hasn't even been worked on for weeks. It's very frustrating as you want the council to work with us and provide some clarity over what's going on."

Woky Ko owner Larkin Cen announced the closure of its two restaurants at Wapping Wharf last week and one in Queen's Road - its site in St Nicholas Market will remain open - with the bridge closure among a combination of reasons.

Mr Cen, who appeared on Masterchef in 2013, said the decision had been made with "great sadness and a heavy heart".

"We are experiencing a very substantial drop in sales at Wapping Wharf due to the main footbridge being closed for prolonged works." he said.

"The price pressure on our takeaway orders caused by the economic squeeze has meant that both locations are no longer viable."

Fleur Cooper, who runs Wild Beer Co, said she had been forced to close on Mondays and Tuesday as she could no longer justify being open seven days a week.

She said trade was down "25 to 30%" on normal.

"We get a lot of people coming to and from work, so at the moment we're missing the people popping in for a drink on the way home," she said.

"The other shops are missing people buying a morning coffee or bacon sandwich - everyone is feeling it.

"Our custom is falling off a cliff after 9pm and that's never happened before, even on a Tuesday we would normally have people in through 10 and 11pm.

"I'm trying to keep 14 people employed. I haven't taken on a general manager because of this and I'm taking on that work myself."

She added the work on the bridge could have been done during the Covid-19 pandemic before nearby offices reopened.

"Now things have come back to life and the bridge has been closed on top of everything else," she said.

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