What do locals think of the plan for eight new railway lines for the city?
For decades now, Bristol’s congested neighbourhoods have long wished for a better railway network connecting the city. A sorry victim of the Beeching Cuts, the city lost many of its railway tracks in the 1960s, and with car use increasing over the years it has since suffered with gridlock and pollution. A report by INRIX, found that drivers lost almost four days sat in traffic in Bristol in 2022, making it the second-most congested city in the UK. Solutions are needed - and so many people are pinning their hopes on a revitalised railway network.
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00:00 For decades now, Bristol's congested neighbourhoods have long wished for a better railway network
00:07 connections for the city. A sorry victim of the beaching cuts, the city lost many of its
00:13 railway tracks in the 1960s and with car use increasing over the years, it has since suffered
00:19 with the gridlock and pollution.
00:22 A report by INRIX found that drivers lost almost four days sat in traffic in Bristol
00:28 in 2022, making the second most congesting city in the UK. Solutions are needed and so
00:35 many people are pinning their hopes on a revitalised railway network. But what do locals think
00:41 about the new train station plans?
00:43 I think it's brilliant because what it means is there'll be more opportunities for people
00:49 to leave their cars behind and if they leave their cars behind there'll be less air pollution
00:54 because the air pollution in Bristol is terrible and it's destroying people's lives.
01:02 I've got to be in my bonnet about this because I help a group called Bristol Clean Air Alliance.
01:08 I've been working with them since 2018 and we basically campaign to help improve the
01:17 air quality in Bristol and a part of that is encouraging people to leave their cars
01:22 behind and to use public transport to walk, to cycle and to take the train.
01:28 If you want a successful railway you need to make sure that it's reliable, that it has
01:34 frequent services, that it has stations in the places that need them and that it's affordable.
01:40 You need all of those things. So that does require investment in the network and it is
01:44 great that a few new stations are opening in Bristol.
01:49 Bristol's public transport continue to be a topic for conversation on social media.
01:53 This year has seen many cuts in bus services and other public transport but we'll now see
01:58 eight railway lines opened. But what are locals' experience of public transport in the city?
02:05 I think it's quite important to recognise that with the increased cost of living at
02:10 the moment people are struggling to be able to pay what probably doesn't need to be increased
02:18 as much as they are in terms of train fees. In terms of my particular experience I only
02:24 really use the train for work travel so it doesn't really affect me directly because
02:29 I can expense it but obviously that's not the case with lots of other people. But from
02:36 my personal experience it doesn't really affect me but I can see how it does affect a lot
02:40 of other people.
02:42 The new stations that have been confirmed for Bristol are Ashley Down, expected to open
02:47 in 2024. North Filton, expected to open in 2026. Hedbury, expected to also open in 2026.
02:55 The Portway Park and Ride was the first to open last month. Only time will tell what
02:59 the long-term impact of new train stations for the city's transport are.