DRIVERS will be diverted for 50 miles through Dursley and Yate when the A38 is closed near Berkeley to replace a railway bridge.

Gloucestershire County Council has issued details of the diversion in advance of the £2 million replacement work, which will be carried out between August and November, to replace the northbound Berkeley bridge.

There will be some delay to traffic when work begins as temporary traffic lights will be used to allow two-way traffic to continue using the southbound bridge.

The temporary lights will remain in place until the work is completed.

A full road closure will be in place between September 6 and 15 whilst cranes replace the structure, which found to be weak in 2013.

During that period, a diversion will be in place via the A38 to Patchway, the A4174, the A432 past Yate, the A46 and the A4135 past Dursley, and vice versa.

The county council said that it appreciates that the diversions are long but that legally they must publicise an alternative route using A roads.

Road users are also being advised to allow extra time and plan their journeys in advance as traffic is likely to be heavier on local roads.

In the event of a closure on the M5 during the road closure, traffic that would normally be diverted onto this section of the A38 will be diverted via the A417 and the A419.

Cllr Nigel Moor, cabinet member for fire, planning and infrastructure said: "This is essential safety work which will allow traffic to continue to flow through our county.

“It’s a popular route which is important for Gloucestershire and we hope that the work will help trigger additional investment in the area.”

People who are interested to find out more about the project and speak to the project team can attend a public drop-in event at the Bay Prince of Wales Hotel, Berkeley Road on Wednesday, July 13 from 3pm to 7.30pm.

The work received £1.99 million funding from the GFirst LEP (local enterprise partnership) Gloucestershire Growth Deal in 2014 with a further investment of £450,000 from Gloucestershire County Council.

David Owen, chief executive of GFirst LEP, which promotes economic growth in Gloucestershire, said: "Improving the transport infrastructure throughout the county is a vital growth priority for GFirst LEP, as outlined in our Strategic Economic Plan.

“The work being undertaken on the Berkeley Bridge will improve connectivity of Gloucestershire both nationally and locally, and importantly provides a crucial link to our Cyber Skills Centre and Renewable Energy, Engineering and Nuclear skills centre at Berkeley - both of which are a vital aspect of our counties attractiveness to business and the growth of our economy."

While the old bridge is removed and the new bridge is put in place, the railway line will be closed for 54 hours.

The closure will take place over the weekend of September 9-11 and Network Rail will make alternative arrangements for commuters wishing to travel between Gloucester and Bristol.

More information will be available at www.networkrail.co.uk

The popular Frampton country fair takes place on September 11, during the planned full road closure. Visitors to the fair are advised to plan their route in advance and allow extra time for their journey.