The Trust managing the iconic structure says it needs to build up cash reserves to keep the bridge open
Bristol’s Clifton Suspension Bridge is facing a severe funding shortfall if it doesn’t change its approach to toll prices(Image: PA Archive/PA Images)
Clifton Suspension Bridge could be closed to traffic unless the trust that runs it can raise £20m over the next 25 years. The details were revealed in the Trust’s public consultation on the proposal to raise the toll price of the bridge from £1 to £1.50 per crossing
The bridge is currently undergoing major renovations to its paint and lights, to avoid corrosion of its over 160-year-old ironwork, which have caused occasional closures in the past year.
That process occurs every quarter of a century, and the trust has said with projected inflation it will need to set aside £20m to be able to pay for the next round of works in 2049/50. The proposal to increase charges would be the first in a decade. The Trust says it is essential to build up the required cash reserves.
“If such essential interventions were not delivered over the longer term then this would eventually compromise the structural integrity of the bridge if corrosion is left untreated,” the consultation report said.
“This would potentially lead to the bridge needing to be closed to traffic for safety reasons, with all the consequences this would have for transport in and around Bristol.”
By increasing the tolls to allow for regular maintenance, the Trust aims to “preserve the structure as a working bridge for the long-term, rather than letting it decline into just being an historic monument,” the report adds. An estimated 3m cars travel over the bridge every year.
The dangers of not regularly maintaining the bridge, which still has around 99% of its original ironwork, are highlighted by the report in a comparison with Hammersmith Bridge in London, which is of a similar age.
That bridge has been closed to motor vehicles since 2020 for restoration work, at a current estimated cost of £250m, according to the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust’s report.
Hammersmith is half the length of Clifton and is set at 1/20th of the height of the structure which towers over the Avon Gorge.
“This experience serves as an indication of what could in principle happen to the Clifton Suspension Bridge if necessary scheduled repairs and refurbishment are not carried out,” the report said.
In order to safeguard the Clifton Suspension Bridge’s future, the Trust says an immediate increase to £1.50 – to come into effect in January 2027 – followed by an annual increase related to a construction inflation index is required.
Tolls account for £2.6m out of the Trust’s £3.1m current annual income.
The Trust receives no public money from national, regional or local governments.
Consultation on the proposed increase will run until Friday November 7.
Once the consultation ends, the bridge Trust will submit a formal application to increase the toll to the Department for Transport.