Another Bristol Parkway Closure - for three weeks

[whole diary]

[Phantom]

Why couldn't they arrange with First Bus to run direct buses from Bristol Parkway to Bristol Temple Meads for the three weeks. Say every 15 minutes?

Suggestion from an informed source suggests that they fear them getting stuck in traffic around Temple Meads.  Still road works going on around Temple Gate?

Works only just starting on the stretch at the bottom of the incline at Temple Meads
Currently getting rid of the central divide for the new section to go in

Works were due to finish this month, but have been extended by AT LEAST ANOTHER YEAR !!

[CMRail]

Why couldn't they arrange with First Bus to run direct buses from Bristol Parkway to Bristol Temple Meads for the three weeks. Say every 15 minutes?

Suggestion from an informed source suggests that they fear them getting stuck in traffic around Temple Meads.  Still road works going on around Temple Gate?

Works only just starting on the stretch at the bottom of the incline at Temple Meads
Currently getting rid of the central divide for the new section to go in

Works were due to finish this month, but have been extended by AT LEAST ANOTHER YEAR !!

Tell me about it, sat on the number 8 hoping to get the 17:30 to Swindon but misssing it and onwards missing my Kemble connection. lovely!

[WelshBluebird]

Considering how bad city centre traffic has been over the last week or so (thanks to roadworks, road closures and a protest yesterday!), I am not surprised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) opted to not do BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains) to BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) shuttles! Does make me wonder how it will cope come the end of October though! My girlfriend tried to get the bus from the bus station to Bath yesterday, it took 50 minutes for the bus to get from the bus station to Thekla!!

[simonw]

It surprises me that the two local authorities, Bristol and SGC, did not sit down with First Bus, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) and Network Rail and do something.

The decision to prioritise Metrobus routes 2+3 over 1, at the same time that Bristol Parkway is shut for three weeks, before Filton Abbeywood shuts for three weeks next month may have been determined by the Temple Meads gyratory issues, but it does not stop people from North Bristol( and Yate, Thornbury, etc) from having to work in the centre of Bristol.

There are certain decisions, or lack of them, that I would call a dereliction of duty and I would class this as one such case.

Adding a bus every 15 minutes from Bristol Parkway to the centre would certainly have helped.

[grahame]

Considering how bad city centre traffic has been over the last week or so (thanks to roadworks, road closures and a protest yesterday!), I am not surprised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) opted to not do BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains) to BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) shuttles! Does make me wonder how it will cope come the end of October though! My girlfriend tried to get the bus from the bus station to Bath yesterday, it took 50 minutes for the bus to get from the bus station to Thekla!!

When Filton Bank is shut - how would Bristol Parkway to Keynsham shuttles work - with a fifteen minute service (stopping the London and Portsmouth trains here) into and out of Bristol.   Added to which passengers on the Cardiff - Portsmouth run would travel Cardiff - Parkway, bus to Keynsham, train to Portsmouth and be able to avoid the City Centre completely.

Logical extension is for Parkway towards Taunton passengers to be bussed beyond the City centre.

[martyjon]

Considering how bad city centre traffic has been over the last week or so (thanks to roadworks, road closures and a protest yesterday!), I am not surprised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) opted to not do BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains) to BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) shuttles! Does make me wonder how it will cope come the end of October though! My girlfriend tried to get the bus from the bus station to Bath yesterday, it took 50 minutes for the bus to get from the bus station to Thekla!!

When Filton Bank is shut - how would Bristol Parkway to Keynsham shuttles work - with a fifteen minute service (stopping the London and Portsmouth trains here) into and out of Bristol.   Added to which passengers on the Cardiff - Portsmouth run would travel Cardiff - Parkway, bus to Keynsham, train to Portsmouth and be able to avoid the City Centre completely.
Logical extension is for Parkway towards Taunton passengers to be bussed beyond the City centre.

Parkway to Ring Road thence to Hicks Gate (one end of Keynsham By-pass) then A4 to Keynsham Church and Willsbridge Road to station. Same for Taunton and beyond pax, train from Keynsham to BRI and change or through PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) - TAU^» (Taunton - next trains)/beyond services.

[martyjon]

It surprises me that the two local authorities, Bristol and SGC, did not sit down with First Bus, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) and Network Rail and do something.

The decision to prioritise Metrobus routes 2+3 over 1, at the same time that Bristol Parkway is shut for three weeks, before Filton Abbeywood shuts for three weeks next month may have been determined by the Temple Meads gyratory issues, but it does not stop people from North Bristol( and Yate, Thornbury, etc) from having to work in the centre of Bristol.

There are certain decisions, or lack of them, that I would call a dereliction of duty and I would class this as one such case.

Adding a bus every 15 minutes from Bristol Parkway to the centre would certainly have helped.

Route m2 was originally intended to be the first route to launch but the continued delays to the completion and testing of the infrastructure led to the m3 route being launched first. It is my belief that First Group lost patience with the Metrobus organisation and threatened to withdraw from the project as they had procured assets (the buses) to operate the services and these were idle in a depot somewhere gathering dust.

The m2 route is the infamous guided bus bit of Metrobus which had its problems and to my mind is a total waste of money, the guided bit that is. At the last minute the Metrobus organisation were oblivious to the requirement for the route to be signed off by the ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) or whatever they are known as at present as the route was using "rails". A crude (my) description of the guide rails is a U-shaped steel section turned 90 degrees left or right and affixed to a guided busway equivalent of a rail chair which in turn is rawlbolted to the concrete surface of the busway itself. In my opinion the desired effect of funnelling the vehicles into the guided bits could equally be achieved by the use of curved and straight kerb edging like the rest of the guided bits. The guide rails only exist for about 5 metres at the commencement of each of the guided bits with the "jockey" wheels running against the walls of the both the kerb edgings of the sidewalks and the central reservations at other times.

The m1 route is still not complete of which that is not mentioned in dispatches. A Metrobus building compound is still present on the city centre next to the Cascade Steps and the Under the Skies floating eatery cum boozer, and stops exclusive to m1 are still devoid of their IPOINTS (ticket machines).

I won't start on the flooding of the m3 city centre stop over the weekend after a slight shower of rain, proof of which was seen by Grahame and DR at last nights meeting.

[TonyK]

Put very simply, First and/or MetroBust were desperate to run something - anything - on a network that should have been up and running at least 3 years ago. I am puzzled by the M1 route though. The infrastructure, such as it is, is in place, and the buses don't need to specially adapted like the M2 route - they only need to be a bog standard bus. Surely it is not beyond the wit of man to run buses from Parkway using the MetroBust bus only junction and the M32 bus lane during the works? Or was the rail work scheduled on the assumption that MetroBust would have been up, running, and solving all of Bristol's transport problems?

[grahame]

Considering how bad city centre traffic has been over the last week or so (thanks to roadworks, road closures and a protest yesterday!), I am not surprised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) opted to not do BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains) to BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) shuttles! Does make me wonder how it will cope come the end of October though! My girlfriend tried to get the bus from the bus station to Bath yesterday, it took 50 minutes for the bus to get from the bus station to Thekla!!

When Filton Bank is shut - how would Bristol Parkway to Keynsham shuttles work - with a fifteen minute service (stopping the London and Portsmouth trains here) into and out of Bristol.   Added to which passengers on the Cardiff - Portsmouth run would travel Cardiff - Parkway, bus to Keynsham, train to Portsmouth and be able to avoid the City Centre completely.
Logical extension is for Parkway towards Taunton passengers to be bussed beyond the City centre.

Parkway to Ring Road thence to Hicks Gate (one end of Keynsham By-pass) then A4 to Keynsham Church and Willsbridge Road to station. Same for Taunton and beyond pax, train from Keynsham to BRI and change or through PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) - TAU^» (Taunton - next trains)/beyond services.

I think you may be saying that would work, right?

[martyjon]

Considering how bad city centre traffic has been over the last week or so (thanks to roadworks, road closures and a protest yesterday!), I am not surprised GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) opted to not do BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains) to BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) shuttles! Does make me wonder how it will cope come the end of October though! My girlfriend tried to get the bus from the bus station to Bath yesterday, it took 50 minutes for the bus to get from the bus station to Thekla!!

When Filton Bank is shut - how would Bristol Parkway to Keynsham shuttles work - with a fifteen minute service (stopping the London and Portsmouth trains here) into and out of Bristol.   Added to which passengers on the Cardiff - Portsmouth run would travel Cardiff - Parkway, bus to Keynsham, train to Portsmouth and be able to avoid the City Centre completely.
Logical extension is for Parkway towards Taunton passengers to be bussed beyond the City centre.

Parkway to Ring Road thence to Hicks Gate (one end of Keynsham By-pass) then A4 to Keynsham Church and Willsbridge Road to station. Same for Taunton and beyond pax, train from Keynsham to BRI and change or through PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) - TAU^» (Taunton - next trains)/beyond services.

I think you may be saying that would work, right?

To avoid road travel into Bristol City Centre, yes but peak hour travel on the Ring Road would be iffy but the bus lanes on the RR will help.

[froome]

I wish to travel from Bath to Gloucester during the period of this closure, and see that I have a choice of either catching the replacement bus to Yate to get the onward service from there, or catching the Cross Country service from Temple Meads to Gloucester which is diverting via Newport. As it happens, I also wish to go to Newport at some point, and was wondering about the validity of breaking my journey there on either outward or return journeys. I ask this as this isn't the normal route for this journey and the return fare to Newport from Bath is considerably more than the fare to Gloucester. Would my ticket be accepted if I break my journey and then continue using the slower service between Newport and Gloucester (ie not the XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) service)?

[CMRail]

Off to Cardiff tomorrow, going to do a change at Parkway for Cardiff to see the electrification progress. Only have a nine minute slot so if I’m delayed then there may be issue but other than that all should be fine.