Overview
The A4 Portway transport corridor project is a vital step towards creating a more sustainable and connected Bristol.
By improving roads for public transport and encouraging active travel, we will not only address congestion and air quality issues but will also promote healthier lifestyles and reduce the city’s carbon footprint.
The A4 Portway project sets out to reduce congestion, improve the reliability of buses and promote walking, wheeling and cycling along this major transport route.
Plans include:
- more green space and tree planting where possible
- new 24-hour bus lanes to increase bus use
- reducing speed limits and improving some junctions
About
We are working to improve bus journeys and the walking, wheeling and cycling environment along the northwestern section of the A4 Portway.
Buses connect people to education, employment, sport and leisure activities, and are integral part of a sustainable transport network.
Through infrastructure changes, we can achieve greater bus reliability, improved bus punctuality, growth in people travelling by bus, and a step change in the quality of bus services along the route. The vision includes:
Work includes creating
- new 24-hour bus lanes to increase bus use
- wider pavements for shared use by pedestrians and cyclists
- reducing speed limits and junction improvements
- more green space and tree planting where possible
- Resurfacing the route
The route
- The A4 in Bristol links two of the city’s Park & Ride sites: one in Portway and the other in Brislington.
- The A4 Portway route, included in this project, is a roughly six-mile route that goes from the Portway Park & Ride, via Avon Gorge, to Hotwells ending before the Mardyke Wharf car park.
- This project does not include Dowry Place, Oldfield Place or the Cumberland Basin road system, as these are part of the longer-term vision included in the Western Harbour regeneration zone that will follow in the future.
Buses
This project will benefit bus services that travel along the A4 Portway, such as the Portway Park & Ride (9), X1, X4, X6/X7, X8/X9, and U2, 13, and 505.
Improving the Portway Park & Ride site
Through a separate but linked project, we remodelled the bus entrance to the Portway Park & Ride site.
This work was completed in September 2025, and the number 9 Park & Ride bus service is now using the new entrance and bus stops for pick-ups and drop-offs.
Work included:
- widening and reconfiguring the bus junction
- adding more wayfinding
- building a pedestrian crossing next to the bus junction
The new layout opens up opportunities to develop the number 9 service and improve the connection between Avonmouth and the city centre. It also means that the 3, 4, 10 and 11 bus services could stop at the site, allowing people travelling to Southmead from North Somerset to use the Park & Ride or train station in the future.
In August 2023, we opened Portway Park & Ride station, connecting the Park & Ride site with the Severn Beach railway line.
How we got here
We held an early engagement exercise in August 2022, which asked people about the issues they face when travelling along the A4 Portway.
Towards the end of 2023 we carried out further engagement on proposals to improve the A4 Portway. This was designed to capture views from residents, businesses, and anyone who uses the route.
Download the detailed engagement report.
This was followed by a statutory consultation in June 2025 on the third phase of the A4 Portway transport corridor project, which includes sections of 24-hour bus lanes, reducing some speed limits, and improving junctions along the route.
These plans have since been approved and work on phase 3 of the project is expected to start early in 2026, which also includes resurfacing the A4 Portway. These works are programmed in to take up to 14 months.
Investment and funding
The A4 Portway project is being funded by the UK government as part of the Department for Transport’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS), secured by the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority.
Construction
We are delivering the A4 Portway project in phases
We are delivering the A4 Portway project in phases, which includes:
- Phase 1: Essential maintenance along the route including drainage works – completed
- Phase 2: Pavement widening and resurfacing, kerb realigning, new lighting – June 2025 to summer 2026
- Phase 3: Building 24-hour bus lanes, reducing some speed limits, improving some junctions, and resurfacing the route – March 2026 to spring 2027
Phase 2 – June 2025 to summer 2026
The second phase of a project got underway on in June 2025.
Work includes:
- widening and resurfacing pavements (some of which are shared by pedestrians and cyclists
- re-aligning kerbs
- improving street lighting along the route
Access for pedestrians and cyclists and all road users will be maintained throughout, but lane closures, reduced speed limits, and temporary walkways will be needed at times.
The work was expected to take up to nine months, but this has been extended to the summer 2026. We are working with the contractor to limit the impact on the overall programme.
Phase 3 – March 2026 to spring 2027
The main phase of work is getting underway from March 2026 and is expected take around 14 months to complete.
The programme of work could change depending on external conditions, such as weather or availability of materials. We will keep this page updated throughout.
Portway Roundabout to Park Road – 9 March 2026 to early 2027
Improving the pavement, kerb, drainage and bus stops; replacing the traffic signals and street lighting; road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Roman Way junction – March 2026 to early 2027
Improving the pavement, kerb, drainage and bus stops; replacing the traffic signals and street lighting; road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Sylvan Way junction – March 2026 to early 2027
Improving the pavement, kerb, drainage and bus stops; replacing the traffic signals and street lighting; road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Hotwells (primarily Hotwell Road) – May 2026 to spring 2027
Improving the pavement, kerb, drainage and bus stops; replacing street lighting; road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Work will primarily focus on the A4 Hotwell Road. But work and temporary traffic management could impact the following roads:
- Granby Hill
- Cabot Way
- Bennett Way
- Cumberland Basin Road
- Faraday Road
- Bristol Gate
- Hope Chapel Hill
- Merchant’s Road
- Christina Terrace
- Clifton Vale
- Ambra Vale
- Rownham Mead
Bridge Valley Road – July 2026 to spring 2027
Improving the pavement, kerb, drainage and bus stops; replacing the traffic signals and street lighting; road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Riverleaze and Manor Farm junction – August 2026 to 2027
Improving the pavement, kerb, drainage and bus stops; delivering a new traffic signal crossing and replacing the street lighting; road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Roman Way to Bridge Valley Road – October 2026 to spring 2027
Road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Riverleaze to Roman Way – November 2026 to 2027
Road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Sylvan Way to Riverleaze – December 2026 to spring 2027
Road resurfacing and painting road markings.
Park Road to Sylvan Way – February 2027 to spring 2027
Road resurfacing and painting road markings.
The bus lanes and reduced speed limits will go live towards the end of the works.
Events
Below you will find a series of upcoming events
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News and updates
All the latest news and updates
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3 March 2026
A4 Portway
Main phase of work to transform the A4 starts this month
Work to improve bus journeys and the walking, wheeling and cycling environment along the north-western section of the A4 Portway is ramping up.
Construction Update
Roman Way – temporary closure
Roman Way, between its junctions with the Portway and Sabrina Way
9.30am on Monday 9 March to 7pm on Friday 13 March
7 January 2026
A4 Portway
Portway Park & Ride bus entrance to close for new gates to be installed
The final phase of a project to upgrade Portway Park & Ride’s bus entrance, to allow buses from the northwest of the city and beyond to access the Park & Ride site, is taking place this month.
Construction Update
A4 Portway to close northbound overnight on 10 and 11 December
The Portway (A4)
Weds 10 Dec, 11pm to 5pm and Thurs 11 Dec, 9pm to 5am
Construction Update
3 September 2025
A4 Portway
Portway Park & Ride’s remodelled bus entrance to reopen
Work to remodel the junction that buses use to access the Park & Ride on the A4 Portway is almost complete, and the number 9 bus will be able to stop at the site from 12 September 2025.
5 June 2025
A4 Portway
Improving accessibility along the A4 Portway
The second phase of a project – to reduce congestion, improve the reliability of buses, and promote active travel along a major transport route in Bristol – will get underway from Monday 16 June 2025.