New £16m footbridge over River Severn set to open

A new £16m footbridge over the River Severn is set to open after more than a year of building work.

The Kepax Bridge in Worcester, which runs from Gheluvelt Park to the Kepax site in St John’s, will open on Thursday.

The council hopes the bridge will encourage more people to either walk or cycle into Worcester instead of driving, leading to fewer vehicles on the roads.

Councillor Marc Bayliss previously said: "This is an important project for the county, one that will bring a major boost for the health and wellbeing of people who live, study, visit or work in Worcester."

Construction began in October last year and the sections of the bridge were lifted into place over the summer.

It will be part of a figure-of-eight route along the River Severn which takes people from Diglis Bridge in the south to Sabrina Bridge near the centre and to the new bridge in the north.

One resident told BBC Hereford and Worcester that it was going to benefit him "massively".

"There are multiple trips I do in Worcester every week, for which I will now be taking a shortcut over Kepax as opposed to going all the way to Sabrina and then back up through town," he said.

Another said she thought it was going to be "great" due to it opening up more access for dog walkers.

Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.