Portishead Line reopening for passengers - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[simonw]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce3lqzy5qqdo

Both BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) and Bristol Post are reporting this, with a 2027 date.

Am I confident?

Does the upcoming WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) election in May make this a priority, after the current government cancelled it 6 months ago? I know I am cynical about this but this has been on/off/maybe for nearly 15-20 years.

[johnneyw]

I'm watching it on BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) Points West.  Looks like it's on.  I wonder how Bristol will manage to derail things this time?

[chuffed]

Hopefully this is the final nail in the coffin for the
rubber matted  Guided Bus Barry Cashway idea.....

[UstiImmigrunt]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce3lqzy5qqdo

Both BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) and Bristol Post are reporting this, with a 2047 date.

Am I confident?

Does the upcoming WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) election in May make this a priority, after the current government cancelled it 6 months ago? I know I am cynical about this but this has been on/off/maybe for nearly 15-20 years.

A more realistic date?

And as stated previously, if this was a Scottish line it would have been open many years ago.

[Red Squirrel]

Interesting to note this line in the WEMCA press release:

The Mayor is also leading work to explore more new stations including at Ashton Gate, which sits on the Bristol & Portishead Line; Lockleaze; St Anne’s Park, and his personal favourite, Saltford.

[chuffed]

If anyone can track down the letter from Lord Peter Hendy to Dan Norris, it would be useful to see the exact wording of it, so that the government cannot weasel their way out of it yet again!

[Timmer]

And as stated previously, if this was a Scottish line it would have been open many years ago.

If it had been anywhere else in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) it would have been opened many years ago. We do things differently in these parts…slowly!

[Wizard]

I’ll believe it when I see a train heading to Portishead.

[Noggin]

Interesting to note this line in the WEMCA press release:

The Mayor is also leading work to explore more new stations including at Ashton Gate, which sits on the Bristol & Portishead Line; Lockleaze; St Anne’s Park, and his personal favourite, Saltford.

The press release seems weirdly egotistical. Perhaps there's an election coming up? Not to mention that any PR^▸ (Public Relations) professional who uses "full steam ahead" to refer to any railway other than a heritage line deserves to be sent to the stocks.

But, on the other hand, if the egomaniac sees it as his life's work to bring us new stations then I suppose we should indulge him. Hopefully he can be goaded into getting us some overhead electrification. 

[infoman]

My concern is that once Dan Norris leaves the WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) job,will his successor change their minds.

For those who live near by the route should make sure the new WECA Mayor from whatever Political party

will commit them selves to not objection to the start of construction of the project.

[chuffed]

From the Portishead railway group


Dear Member,
We weren't expecting any news about funding until March, but late this afternoon we received the amazing news that full funding has now been obtained and construction will start this summer.

After almost 25 years of campaigning, this sudden good news feels almost hard to believe, but it fits with the many comments and observations that we've picked up over the past few months. After all the work that has already been done, construction of the line really is happening!

You can find the full press release from Dan Norris, the Mayor of the West of England, here:
https://www.westofengland-ca.gov.uk/news/full-steam-ahead-for-bristol-portishead-line/

There's a lot more detail to come and we'll update you on how the full funding has been sourced when we have that information. However, it seems that the full business case will now be passed in March, with construction starting in the summer.

The information in our last email is relevant to all this, so here's a reminder of the links to the North Somerset Council meeting last month. You can find all the papers here under item 8:
https://n-somerset.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=169&MId=1159&Ver=4
along with the latest report to Council:
https://n-somerset.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s6797/08%20MetroWest%20Phase%201%20Report%20to%20the%20Council%2014th%20January%2025%20-%20Final.pdf
 
Regards,
Peter
 
Peter Maliphant
Membership Secretary
Portishead Railway Group

[Red Squirrel]

Interesting to note this line in the WEMCA press release:

The Mayor is also leading work to explore more new stations including at Ashton Gate, which sits on the Bristol & Portishead Line; Lockleaze; St Anne’s Park, and his personal favourite, Saltford.

The press release seems weirdly egotistical. Perhaps there's an election coming up? Not to mention that any PR^▸ (Public Relations) professional who uses "full steam ahead" to refer to any railway other than a heritage line deserves to be sent to the stocks.

But, on the other hand, if the egomaniac sees it as his life's work to bring us new stations then I suppose we should indulge him. Hopefully he can be goaded into getting us some overhead electrification. 

A lot of recent press releases from the West of England MCA have been written in a similar way, giving prominence to the Mayoral role and Dan Norris in particular. I suspect this is partly down to the Government's attitude to devolution, though it may also be an attempt to clarify where Mayoral power lies now Bristol no longer has one...

[RichardB]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce3lqzy5qqdo

Both BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) and Bristol Post are reporting this, with a 2027 date.

Am I confident?

Does the upcoming WECA^» (West of England Combined Authority - about) election in May make this a priority, after the current government cancelled it 6 months ago? I know I am cynical about this but this has been on/off/maybe for nearly 15-20 years.

Just to be pedantic, the scheme wasn't cancelled six months ago, the Government simply announced a review of all transport infrastructure schemes. 

This looks to be unalloyed good news.  This very local announcement is in a similar vein (ie local announcements of what you'd normally expect to be announced by a Minister) to what the Weston-super-Mare MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) told his local newspaper about the Weston loop being electrified.   

[Red Squirrel]

The Press Release from North Somerset Council is a bit more nuanced, and uses words like 'if' and 'could':

Council strives to close funding gap for Portishead rail line
5:50pm - 10 February 2025

The West of England Mayoral Combined Authority and North Somerset Council have come together to announce that they are looking to contribute the additional funds needed to deliver the Portishead to Bristol rail line.

The Full Business Case for the long-awaited reopening of the rail line was submitted to the Department for Transport in December last year. Through detailed design, the business case identified an emerging gap in the scheme’s funding, caused by delays, inflation and rising costs across the construction industry. 

To tackle this challenge, the West of England Combined Authority are set to contribute another £27m to this important railway scheme, with North Somerset looking to provide the remaining £3m. 

The additional funding from the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority is set to be ratified at their March Committee meeting with North Somerset Council's contribution to be approved at their Council meeting in February. 

If the additional funding is committed and the Full Business Case is approved by the Department for Transport, which they have indicated will follow quickly, construction of the rail line and stations at Portishead and Pill could begin soon afterward.

Councillor Mike Bell, Leader of North Somerset Council and Executive Member for Major Projects, said: “The reopening of the Portishead to Bristol rail line is set to be a transformative project for our area, connecting 50,000 people back into the rail network so that they can use a regular and sustainable transport service to reach a wealth of opportunities across the southwest. 

“Not only would this essential investment in local communities slash travel times in half and reduce car commuting by 5.5%, it would also unlock an estimated £43 million in economic growth every year. 

“This makes the Portishead to Bristol rail line a scheme of significant long-term benefit and something we’re proud to be pushing forward in partnership with the West of England Combined Authority, the Department for Transport and Network Rail. 

“The additional funding from both the West of England Combined Authority and North Somerset Council would close the gap on this shovel ready scheme, bringing us ever closer to the first trains making their journeys in 2027 – the first passenger trains to do so since the line was originally closed almost 60 years ago.

“As ever, I’d like to thank everyone who has put the work in over the past few years to get this vital project so close to construction. In particular, I’d like to thank Mayor Dan Norris for his strong support and North Somerset MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) Sadik Al-Hassan for his continued backing.”

Source: North Somerset Council

[Chris from Nailsea]

The Press Release from North Somerset Council is a bit more nuanced, and uses words like 'if' and 'could':

That's how we do things here in North Somerset: best not to make any rash promises.