Bristol Zoo project to invest £2m in improving transport near M5 site

Bristol Zoo Project will invest £2m in improving public roads in the future as part of plans to improve the conservation zoo. It is one of a number of future developments, including new exhibits, buildings and play facilities, to come to the Easter Compton site.

Bristol Zoo’s project, previously known as the Wild Place Project until Bristol Zoos moved from the former Clifton site, is currently developing the Central African Forest habitat, which will start work later this month. It will become home to endangered western lowland gorillas and endangered cherry-crowned mangabeys who will live together, a first for a UK zoo.

Bristol Zoo Project exclusively told Bristol Live that the number of species at the zoo, currently 26, will triple by 2025. It is hoped that the Central African Forest will open next year, and the 44 species currently in the former Clifton site, including the gorillas, snails and fish, will transfer to the new site.

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In July, a new conservation-themed adventure play area known as Explorers Basecamp will open before the summer holidays and a number of other new developments will start in stages over the next few years. New retail areas, catering facilities and a new conservation campus are coming to South Gloucestershire Zoo to slowly fill the 136 acre site.

Two million pounds will be spent on public road improvements by the zoo, which will help create two new bus stops outside the site, improving access for cyclists and pedestrians, and building a new bus and bus stop at in front of the place. points off. Electric vehicle charging points will be installed in the car park and a new footpath will be created on Blackhorse Hill.

A new conservation campus will be created on site, which will become a new education and skills center for the region. It will focus on conservation, veterinary medicine and animal husbandry.

Visitors will be able to see veterinary procedures and see animals that are extinct in the wild and being bred for reintroduction. The breeding center will become home to the world’s most threatened species of reptiles, amphibians, fish and birds.

Justin Morris, chief executive of the Bristol Zoological Society, said: “This is a hugely exciting time for us as work continues this month on our new habitat in the Central African Forest. This is the first major development in our plan to create a new conservation zoo at Bristol Zoo Project. A second habitat, the Central African Savanna, will also be created in the future and become home to the black rhinoceros and red-necked ostrich, joining the existing giraffe, zebra and cheetah.

“We will also build a new conservation campus which will include conservation, veterinary medicine, animal husbandry and learning centres. This will create a new education and skills hub for the region, with 20 new learning spaces. In addition, it will provide teaching facilities for over 600 students each year who participate in our higher education programs and help us achieve our target of engaging 90,000 school children.

“Going forward, we will create new entrance, retail, catering and play facilities to give visitors the best possible experience. To promote sustainable travel, we will invest £2m in improving public roads.

“This will include new on-site bus and coach pick-up/drop-off points, two new off-site bus stops, improved access for cyclists and pedestrians and electric vehicle charging points in our car park. We will also create a new footpath on Blackhorse Hill, improving access to Easter Compton.”

The plans are part of ambitions to increase the number of endangered and critically endangered species that will live in the conservation zoo. Currently, 78 percent of the zoo’s animals are endangered, but the goal is to increase the percentage to 90 by 2035.

Justin Morris said: “The zoo will become home to some of the world’s most threatened species. Currently, 78% of the animals we care for are both threatened and part of targeted conservation programmes, and our aim is to increase this to 90% of species by 2035.

“Bristol Zoological Society works in nine countries, on four continents, working to conserve and protect the species most in need of help. We are currently involved in 40 coordinated breeding programs and run 14 field conservation projects with 31 local partner organizations.

“Zoo Bristol Project protects threatened habitats on our doorstep, such as British woodlands and around the globe, including Madagascar, the Philippines and Equatorial Guinea. This new conservation zoo from Bristol Zoo Project will support significant growth in our conservation and education work and will provide visitors with an innovative and engaging experience. This will ensure that future generations of children can come face-to-face with animals in nature, and the Society will be able to continue its critical conservation and education work.”

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