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Bailiffs remove tree protesters in Bristol

Bristol City Council says it has removed protesters from the Stapleton allotments in Bristol where they have been camping in trees to protect them from being cut down for the new Metrobus route.

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Thousands spent on allotment security

Protester being evicted from Stapleton allotments Credit: ITV News

Round the clock security will remain in place at a site where protesters were evicted last month in Bristol.

Campaigners camped out at Stapleton allotments in opposition to a new MetroBus route. Bristol City Council won a court order to remove them.

It says ongoing site surveillance and the eviction has cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Work is underway to reconfigure the allotments, making sure there is no interruption to local food production as a result of work on the MetroBus scheme. No allotments are being lost and improved facilities will be put in place for allotment holders including more parking, more water points and a new allotment building.

Once work on the allotments is complete, construction work for the bus-only junction will get underway. The link, which is part of the North Fringe/Hengrove Park MetroBus route, is expected to reduce journey times between Hengrove and the University of West of England by 27 minutes, linking people in South Bristol with growing job opportunities in the north of the city.

The site will remain under guard, with the situation reviewed regularly. Whilst there is a cost to this, it is far less than the cost of clearing another occupation of the site. The costs of the recent eviction operation and necessary ongoing site security are estimated to be hundreds of thousands of pounds.

– Bristol City Council spokesman
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Bailiffs remove tree protesters in Bristol

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