A CYCLING café has seen a £10,000 decline in trade within the first three weeks of a nine-month road closure.

Concerns are growing for the social enterprise the Handlebar Café, part of Bespoke Biking, that it will be able to survive with footfall dramatically decreasing since Garnier Road closed.

The road by St Catherine’s Hill, in Winchester, was closed at the beginning of March for work to save the 100-year-old Tunbridge from deteriorating.

Hampshire Chronicle:

Business as usual signs are in place but company director Heather Evans fears pedestrians and cyclists are still not aware they can get through.

READ MORE: Winchester bridge to be replaced during nine month road closure

Heather said: “We are £10,000 down for the month, which admittedly has not been helped by bad weather and the weekends are still just as busy.

“We’re having to send staff home so they’re losing pay. The worst-case scenario is that the whole of Bespoke Biking comes down.

Hampshire Chronicle:

“We were clobbered by Covid but managed to flex and survive and we’re hoping we can get through this too. We didn’t realise how much trade we would lose from people passing by car as we are very much a café for pedestrians and cyclists. It’s had an immediate impact.

“We need a sign saying that we’re open to walkers and cyclists. The access-only signs could be read as meaning just residents.

“Hampshire County Council has done lots of communication and done a fantastic job of actually explaining the bridge work but who knew the closure would have this big an impact on us?

SEE ALSO: Tunbridge: Hampshire County Council release video on bridge work

Hampshire Chronicle:

“I’m hoping that through messaging we can let everyone know that we’re still here and open and they can get to us. There’s a real love for the Handlebar Café and I believe business will pick back up again, especially when the sun comes out.

“But the climate is so hard, all our costs are going up and we want to give all our staff a pay rise to help them too.”

Hampshire Chronicle:

Regular customers Victoria Latreuille and Clare Barclay often stop at the café after a run with their dogs.

READ ALSO: Winchester Business Excellence Awards: Service Excellence category

Victoria, from Sparsholt, said: “The café is still lovely despite the ongoing work. It’s in a prime location and quite the hot spot. It was a bit of a struggle to park but the contractors were really helpful and it's good to see signs up."

Clare, from Alresford, added: “If you’re not a regular then it’s not so obvious. It would be a huge loss if it has to close, so many people love to stop here.”

A spokesperson from Hampshire County Council spokesperson said: “This is a complex engineering project that requires heavy machinery to be on-site at all times and some disruption is, unfortunately, inevitable.

"However, we have sought to minimise this by enabling the car park close to the Handlebar Café to remain open to traffic as much as possible, and we have agreed some free parking in the nearby St Catherine’s park-and-ride facility.

"We are also carrying out repair works to the bridge in two halves so that walkers and cyclists are still able to use Tunbridge for the majority of the construction period. In light of the cafe's comments, we will be reviewing the location of the signage, and the messages on them, to ensure visitors know the cafe is still accessible.”

The £1.4m bridge replacement project is expected to be finished by the end of November. Garnier Road car park, by the café, and St Catherine’s Park and Ride remain open and pedestrians and cyclists will still be able to use one side of the bridge throughout most of the works.

The Handlebar Cafe opened in 2019 after being designed by a group of teenagers through the charity SPUDYouth. The cafe funds the Bespoke Biking bike hub in Winchester City Centre which services and repairs bikes to sell, donate or give back.