RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — The City of Richmond will soon hold a public input meeting on the Manchester Connection to James River Project, one of several large-scale improvements slated to close all three bridges connecting the neighborhood and downtown Richmond for an extended period in the next few years. Residents can provide feedback at next week's meeting on preliminary plans, including proposed pedestrian trails and bridge improvements, that the city said will improve safety, connectivity and access for pedestrians and cyclists to the James River. Manchester Connection is a pedestrian bridge behind CoStar Group on South 5th Street connecting downtown Richmond to the T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge. Two other bridges connecting the neighborhoods to the other side of the river, Mayo Bridge and Manchester Bridge, are also expected to close amid large-scale construction projects coming to the area. A spokesperson for Richmond's Department of Transportation said the Manchester Connection does not meet current width standards. The city wants to widen the bridge to around 8 to 10 feet, though the final width has not yet been determined, and preliminary concepts do not include additional travel lanes. The project is expected to cost $6.3 million. An information sheet from a recent Manchester Alliance meeting detailed that work on the Manchester Connection will start in spring 2028, and construction is expected to close the walking bridge for two years. The city has not established an official construction start date and timeline as it continues to evaluate design concepts, the spokesperson said Thursday. Manchester Alliance is a neighborhood association. At a packed meeting last week, residents voiced concerns over preliminary project plans that cut access to the Potterfield pedestrian river crossing for multiple years. Meanwhile, the city and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) are gearing up to begin a $190 million Mayo Bridge replacement project that takes the bridge from four lanes to two. Cycling advocates worry about cyclists' and pedestrians' safety and are asking for wider bike lanes. The project will replace the existing bridge of "extended age" that opened in 1913, VDOT said. Work on the Manchester Canal Bridge replacement project is also expected to start this month, per Manchester Alliance's info sheet. The $10.7 million project will replace the "structurally deficient" bridge on Hull Street over Manchester Canal, the city said. Completion is slated for fall 2028. Richmond said it's working to address residents' concerns about potential disruptions from large-scale bridge projects coming to the Manchester neighborhood in the Southside. "The city is coordinating these projects with the goal of avoiding simultaneous closures of all three bridges and minimizing impacts on residents and commuters," the spokesperson said in a statement to 8News. Residents can review preliminary plans, ask questions and provide feedback next week at the Wednesday, Oct. 28, meeting from 6 to 8 p.m. at Main Street Station. ...read more read less