'It'd make things easier' Residents welcome plans for new bridge

PLANS to build a 40-metre bridge over the river Avon linking Keynsham and Hanham have been welcomed with cautious optimism by locals.

- Angus MCINTYRE

The bridge - which will be erected on land near the Somerdale estate on the Keynsham side and close to the Chequers Inn and Old Lock and Weir Inn on the Hanham side - will be accessible to pedestrians and cyclists.

The plans were put forward by Bath and North East Somerset Council and approved by South Gloucestershire Council last month. Work on the bridge must now start within three years. However, although the plans have been approved, funding has not yet been secured.

Dan Rawlins, manager of the Old Lock and Weir Inn, said plans for the bridge had been in the works for ages, but added he was optimis-