A further £660,000 of funding has been approved for the ongoing work on the A431 Kelston Road, after it was revealed the land is still suffering from subsidence.
An emergency decision report was announced at a Council meeting last night.
It states: “Following emergency repairs, further investigation work has been completed by the appointed contractor and the Authority now needs to undertake more comprehensive works to prevent a collapse, stabilise the road and reopen it to all traffic.”
Councillor Paul Crossley (Liberal Democrat, Southdown ward) commented: “The Council’s engineers have been working flat out on the repairs to Kelston Road.
“It has now emerged that below the land which has already moved, there is another layer of ‘soft’ rock which is also at a risk of sliding.
“A new scheme has been designed which will require two rows of deep piling to ensure that future land-slips are prevented.
“The safety of members of the public who will use the repaired road is of paramount importance to us and for the long term.
“The Council has funded the scheme so far through borrowing, however we have been lobbying and will continue to lobby the government for funding to help pay for the scheme.
“We are continuing to do everything we can to reduce the impact of the ongoing road closure, including working alongside Mr Watts, the proprietor of the temporary toll road. Kelston Road will re-open, and the works are still on schedule to be completed by Christmas.”
The additional £0.66m of funding is being taken from the Bath Transport Package budget, increasing the total approved budget for the project to £2.66m.
