Portishead Line reopening for passengers - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

I thought I saw some sort of rebuttal of the scary BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) story.  Is there another thread current about this?

In "Bristol Commuters" ... fit both "Bristol" and "Campaign" boards.   We should merge at some point.

Yeah just found another thread on this ...

Thanks for your links, and those topics have indeed now been moved and merged as suggested. 

[paul7575]

I thought I saw some sort of rebuttal of the scary BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) story.  Is there another thread current about this?

Paul

In "Bristol Commuters" at http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=19829.msg238217#msg238217 ... fit both "Bristol" and "Campaign" boards.   We should merge at some point.

Thanks Grahame.

[johnneyw]

According to the Bristol Evening Post, North Somerset has worked with Gloucestershire County Council and Wiltshire Council to apply for money for the Portishead Line by submitting 'an expression of interest' in the government's Transforming Cities Fund'. Not sure what the chances are there nor why the other two councils would want to get involved. Come to think of it, I'm not sure what the fund is intended to achieve.

[stuving]

According to the Bristol Evening Post, North Somerset has worked with Gloucestershire County Council and Wiltshire Council to apply for money for the Portishead Line by submitting 'an expression of interest' in the government's Transforming Cities Fund'. Not sure what the chances are there nor why the other two councils would want to get involved. Come to think of it, I'm not sure what the fund is intended to achieve.

Zero.

The fund is described in the call for proposals here. Not only is it for regions of big cities:

As the Fund is seeking to support the largest city regions, the application form will look for evidence of high workday as opposed to residential populations. City regions with workday populations above 200,000 people will therefore score more strongly in the first section.

but it would need to not be part of WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about):

As they have received automatic allocations, the six Mayoral Combined Authorities (Liverpool City Region, Tees Valley, Greater Manchester, West of England, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough and the West Midlands) are ineligible to bid for additional funding.

Unless they are applying to the mayor for some of his allocation?

[martyjon]

According to the Bristol Evening Post, North Somerset has worked with Gloucestershire County Council and Wiltshire Council to apply for money for the Portishead Line by submitting 'an expression of interest' in the government's Transforming Cities Fund'. Not sure what the chances are there nor why the other two councils would want to get involved. Come to think of it, I'm not sure what the fund is intended to achieve.

North Somerset got some hope, they did not want to be part of WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) and they sure do not even share a boundary with either Gloucestershire or Wiltshire. 

[TonyK]

My guess is that the tripartite bid is in the hope of getting around the WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) ineligibility for these funds. Wiltshire will be hoping for an extension of the proposed Portishead to Bath services as far as Westbury. Gloucestershire can join in citing Severn Beach. Bristol and Bath combined probably have a workday population of 200,000, so it could be a goer, but I wouldn't bet on it.
It may also be that Bristol and Gloucestershire have figured that despite the bold promises, there is little chance of getting anything out of the Western Super Mayor for improvements to local transport, just more MetroBust.

[Red Squirrel]

...there is little chance of getting anything out of the Western Super Mayor for improvements to local transport, just more MetroBust.

...and roads, don't forget roads, Peter likes roads. Including, I see, the motorway that never got built from Cumberland Basin to Clevedon. Not sure how that fits in with marvellous Marv's plans to replace Cumberland Basin with a council estate...

[stuving]

My guess is that the tripartite bid is in the hope of getting around the WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) ineligibility for these funds. Wiltshire will be hoping for an extension of the proposed Portishead to Bath services as far as Westbury. Gloucestershire can join in citing Severn Beach. Bristol and Bath combined probably have a workday population of 200,000, so it could be a goer, but I wouldn't bet on it.
It may also be that Bristol and Gloucestershire have figured that despite the bold promises, there is little chance of getting anything out of the Western Super Mayor for improvements to local transport, just more MetroBust.

The Rules of the Fund are pretty clear, though couched in DFT^▸ (Department for Transport)-specific jargon. The money will only be granted to "city regions", and that's not a region of a city but a city with its boundary extended to make more transport sense. It's the kind of a thing that could have a combined authority, and two do - Liverpool City region (which is mayoral) and Sheffield City Region (which is, I suppose, amayoral).

So does anyone really think the various bits involved here constitute a (major) city region without including anything within the WECA boundary? It must be cheap to do, as it's a very, very, long shot. It would only work if DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) come back and say "we've had no valid applications, so we'll have to share the money among your fatuous suggestion and a couple of similar ones".

[eightf48544]

. I would provide one station on the line at Pill and my proposal would be to provide 3 up services to Bristol in the morning peak at say 0700, 0730 and 0800, the units travelling down to Portishead as a 3 unit combo, in or out of service, and which split into the three seperate units to form the up services. In the evening peak 3 down services at say 1600, 1700 and 1800 from BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)), returning as a 3 unit combo if there is insufficient time for a unit to return to Parson Street station at least.

I'm dreaming again.

Maybe ideal for a hybrid (battery diesel) 230 (ex D Stock)

[SandTEngineer]

Perhaps at last some good news......https://www.insidermedia.com/insider/southwest/116m-bristol-rail-project-poised-to-get-nod-from-cabinet

27 Jun 2018  South West Business

£116m Bristol rail project poised to get nod from cabinet

Bristol Council's cabinet is set to approve the first phase of the MetroWest Rail project, which forms part of ambitious plans to bring 105,000 new homes and 82,500 new jobs to the West of England by 2036.

Approval is being sought from cabinet for a third initial promotion agreement (IPA3), to be signed in conjunction with the other West of England authorities in a meeting on 3 July 2018.

The project forms part of the West of England Joint Spatial plan, which sets out how the new jobs and homes will be delivered up to 2036.

The MetroWest Phase one project will deliver a new rail link between Bristol and Portishead, serving intermediate stations. It will also increase rail service frequencies between Severn Beach and Bath.

The cost of the scheme is estimated to be £116m, up from an initial £58m as previously estimated.

The report to go before cabinet reads: "North Somerset Council has committed to take on all liability for the additional £58m scheme costs, over and above the original £58m scheme cost estimate. Signing the IPA3 will enable the project to continue to be developed without taking on additional liabilities.

"Bristol’s Cabinet endorsed the development of the MetroWest programme (Phases 1 and 2) in January 2013. Since that time the cost profile and delivery model have changed significantly and WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) has been constituted and become a partner in this project.

"Taking this into account and the time that has elapsed it is considered that a new cabinet approval should be sought. Although a clear funding strategy has not yet been identified, delegated authority to enter into a new Initial Promotion Agreement is being sought now to avoid programme delay once a funding strategy has been identified.

"Delays to the programme would result in further cost increases, put the already allocated Local Growth Fund money at risk due to spending deadlines, and add further risk to the project. Potential options for further funding for the project include the Department for Transport’s ‘Transforming Cities Fund’."

[chuffed]

Walked past the line parallel to Sainsburys earlier and saw the official laminated notice that said NSC were applying for a DCO^▸ (Driver Controlled Operation) order to build a new station. Interestingly the map had the coloured line terminating opposite  Kestrel Court, whereas I thought the station was to be located at the site of the current Quays Avenue roundabout.

[Red Squirrel]

Walked past the line parallel to Sainsburys earlier and saw the official laminated notice that said NSC were applying for a DCO^▸ (Driver Controlled Operation) order to build a new station. Interestingly the map had the coloured line terminating opposite  Kestrel Court, whereas I thought the station was to be located at the site of the current Quays Avenue roundabout.

After all the shenanigans about the level crossing last year (or was it the year before, or the year before that? Time flies in Portishead...) I think the sign must be wrong... or could the coloured line represent the path from the station towards the downtown district of Port Zed? (to be called Ap Rees Boulevard, I hear)

[TonyK]

I would leap up and down with joy, ordering drinks all round, had history not taught me caution. But north somerset parish council ponying up £58 mil? Maybe they are playing the long game. They were after buying the Worle Sainsbury store and all that surrounds it. The income from that will give them a lovely surplus. So why not borrow £58 million at, maybe 2% in bonds for 20 years? Financial advisors love that at the moment, and local authorities are good for the money. Repayments will be less than £3 million per year, for which they get a fast connection to where the jobs are, and a lorra lorra money from those Community Infrastructure Levy payments from all the new houses they will give permission for. Plus, as the council is a friend of the current government, Chris "Fayling" Grayling might give them a few quid.

It could all go horribly wrong, of course, if all those Polish folk return to Warsaw come Brexit. Personally, I hope the couple who run Espresso in WSM don't do one. He makes wonderful coffee, she is gorgeous, as is their child.

Dziękuję!

[Red Squirrel]

Moja przyjemność, as Elfan would say.

[TonyK]

Moja przyjemność, as Elfan would say.

Murky buckets, mon sewer.