News / Transport
Portishead line ‘delayed by a year’
The starting date for new passenger services on the Portishead rail line could be set back by as much as a year to early 2020.
Travel West, which is delivering the project as part of a £100 million investment into rail infrastructure in and around Bristol, said problems with construction and signalling had moved the date back from early 2019.
The reopened passenger line will form one part of major works around Bristol which will include new local stations in Ashley Down, Henbury and North Filton.
is needed now More than ever
A petition was delivered to Bristol City Council on Tuesday asking for another new station to be included at Ashton Gate to alleviate transport problems on match days.
Reopening the Portishead line to passengers has been delayed due to problems with widening the four tunnels to meet modern day standards while not interrupting key freight trains from the Royal Portbury Docks.
Further delays have been caused by signalling work carried out by Network Rail to accommodate the new lines and stations around the city. Bristol Friends of Suburban Railway said they feared the delays to the Portishead line could stretch into 2021.
The cost of the Portishead line reopening is absorbed in the £58.2 million set aside for phase 1 of the MetroWest investment, which remains the same.
Campaigners also who want another station at Ashton Gate to be included in phase 1 delivered a petition which was debated by councillors on Tuesday.
The mayor set aside £50,000 through an amendment requested by the Tories in his most recent budget to explore the business case for a new station at either Barons Close or the Old Ashton Meadows sidings.
The preliminary business case for MetroWest phase 2 was put forward in July last year.