Bristol connections: Metro, Bus Rapid Transit, PTE, ITA and local councils - discussion

[whole diary]

[Red Squirrel]

It is indeed - but it was still decimated by the Luftwaffe. 

I think 'devastated'  - they destroyed more than one tenth. But yes it doesn't bear any comparison with the devastation wreaked on Dresden, Hamburg and Berlin.

[Chris from Nailsea]

It is indeed - but it was still decimated by the Luftwaffe. 

I think 'devastated'  - they destroyed more than one tenth.

Cough ... I was tactfully giving the Luftwaffe the benefit of the doubt ... 

[Red Squirrel]

Bristol Post campaign continues for the re-quadrification of Ashley Bank; they are wise to point out that there's many a slip twixt cup and lip.

Julie Boston of FOSBR^▸ (Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways) (Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways) says:

"It's not just about four-tracking, it's to make the point that for nine million people who go to Temple Meads every year, there's no train for them to get onto. They have to get a cab, if they are well off, or whatever.

"We are thinking of going to the taxi rank at 6pm and asking passengers whether they would like a half-hourly local train service."

I wonder how the cabbies would react to that?

[swrural]

Julie is a stalwart campaigner.  It has been a pleasure to meet her here and there in the regional councils.

It seems to me that the taking over of Stapleton Road area itself by ethnic minorities has been a mixed outcome.  We have had the saving of a road shopping area that was once vibrant and on a direct axis to Castle St, as your article in Wikipedia, RS, points out, and its replacement with the ethnic shopping.  On the other hand, all the features of deprivation, prostitution, extreme violence and so on, has come with that ethnic 'vibrancy'.  It seems to me that if the area around the station were somehow to become more up market, SRD could once again be a good exchange point for frequent service to TM^‡(resolve) plus (whisper tram perhaps) a direct service down the present M32 to the City centre.

At the moment, I feel visiting pax could be reluctant to step outside the station.  Have I got this totally wrong?  I keep reading of some fearful incidents in the BP^» (Beyond Petroleum (Former name - British Petroleum) - home page). 

[JayMac]

It seems to me that the taking over of Stapleton Road area itself by ethnic minorities has been a mixed outcome.  We have had the saving of a road shopping area that was once vibrant and on a direct axis to Castle St, as your article in Wikipedia, RS, points out, and its replacement with the ethnic shopping.  On the other hand, all the features of deprivation, prostitution, extreme violence and so on, has come with that ethnic 'vibrancy'. 

I fail to see how this has any relevance to the topic at hand whatsoever. The Stapleton Road area is indeed vibrant (no need for the inverted commas). That you equate ethnic diversity with the negative traits of 'deprivation, prostitution, extreme violence and so on', is, to my sensibilities, a tad offensive.

At the moment, I feel visiting pax could be reluctant to step outside the station.  Have I got this totally wrong?  I keep reading of some fearful incidents in the BP^» (Beyond Petroleum (Former name - British Petroleum) - home page). 

That's it in a nutshell, The fear of crime based on media reports. The actuality is very different. I was in South London yesterday. I wasn't knifed, shot, mugged or propositioned by a lady of negotiable affection even once.

[swrural]

Got me wrong  - again.  I knew someone would and tried to phrase my comment carefully.  I knew someone would leap in though, shame isn't it?   

You are correct.  Fear is different to the actual circumstances.  That's precisely what I meant. 

[Brucey]

Got me wrong  - again.  I knew someone would and tried to phrase my comment carefully.  I knew someone would leap in though, shame isn't it? 

I am afraid that I also read your post in the same way as bignosemac.  To be honest, if I were a member of one of said ethnic groups in that area, I would be finding your post grossly offensive.  We must remember that this is a public forum, readable by anyone and everyone.  If two registered members feel this way and feel the need to comment, then I would expect others also share our interpretation.

[swrural]

I'll take your judgement brucey, you are in charge of course.  I plead you have misunderstood me but if it helps, perhaps mods will kindly delete my post and your critique.  I do not want to upset anyone, thank you.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Administrator note:

May I remind all members that they are personally responsible for what they post.

In this particular topic, some concerns have been raised that the tone of certain posts has been inconsistent with the agreement that everyone signs up to when they join this forum. See http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=1761.0 for details.

Please do consider these wider issues when posting on this forum.

[Red Squirrel]

At the moment, I feel visiting pax could be reluctant to step outside the station.  Have I got this totally wrong?  I keep reading of some fearful incidents in the BP^» (Beyond Petroleum (Former name - British Petroleum) - home page). 

The bare facts, according to Police data for in March 2013:

900 reported crimes within 1 mile of Stapleton Rd, of which 56 were categorised as violent crime;
281 reported crimes within 1 mile of Clifton Down, of which 13 were categorised as violent crime.

Edit: I think I should add:
1346 reported crimes within 1 mile of Temple Meads, of which 150 were categorised as violent crime

Maybe we should all just stay home and lock our doors?

[trainer]

The trouble with 'bare facts' is that they give simplistic view of life.  Stapleton Road may have some social issues, but I also know from personal experience having visited the area over many years, it feels no more unsafe than the city centre for much of the day and there are many positive things going for the community.  I wonder if we decided on whether to visit a place or change trains at a specific station based on such facts we would ever visit any of our big cities.

I can't help feeling that this line of thought on this topic is seriously in danger derailing the thrust of the arguments concerning the best form of public transport for the Greater Bristol area.

[Red Squirrel]

The trouble with 'bare facts' is that they give simplistic view of life.  Stapleton Road may have some social issues, but I also know from personal experience having visited the area over many years, it feels no more unsafe than the city centre for much of the day and there are many positive things going for the community.  I wonder if we decided on whether to visit a place or change trains at a specific station based on such facts we would ever visit any of our big cities.

Well quite a lot of us actually live in cities, and are very happy to do so. I was being ironic when I suggested staying home and locking our doors - sorry, there doesn't seem to be an emoticon for that!

My point is that Stapleton Rd is safer than the area around Temple Meads, by the only empirical measure available. By the same measure it is also significantly safer than the area around Montpelier, where I live.

I can't help feeling that this line of thought on this topic is seriously in danger derailing the thrust of the arguments concerning the best form of public transport for the Greater Bristol area.

Well maybe, but only up to a point - fear of crime puts people off using public transport.

[JayMac]

I have never seen such concerted and organised opposition to any transport scheme in the past. Stop BRT2 organised a petition and e-petition (please sign if you haven't done so already), commissioned its own passenger survey, leafleted people in the dock area, and did so much more - still are doing. They hired an expert witness for the Public Inquiry, as well as submitting proofs of evidence, and look to have done a better job than the council. I am convinced that BRT^▸ (Bus Rapid Transit) and especially BRT2 influenced the outcome of the Mayoral election, given our red-trousered Mayor's stated antipathy to the scheme.

It may also influence the outcome of Thursday's local elections, although few of the wards up for grabs are on the route of Bust Rabid Transit. The big exception is Cabot ward, which includes the city centre, harbour and harbour railway, and Spike Island. It is the epicentre of Stop BRT2. The politics of the ward are usually as yellow as jaundiced custard, with 2 Lib Dem councillors, one of whom, Dr Mark Wright, is up for election. Their campaign website is rather silent on BRT, but whatever their personal views, they will be bound by party whip. Lib Dem leader Tim Kent is the principal author of the dog's breakfast that is BRT, having been cabinet member for transport prior to George Ferguson's victory last November.He is one of the very few people in Bristol who thinks BRT is a good idea, so is hiighly unlikely to tolerate criticism of his pet scheme from his own side. Opinion in the area seems to be that Mark Wright is a general all-round good egg and a good councillor, but that BRT is too big an issue to ignore. The only one of the four candidates in Cabot to have voiced unequivocal opposition to BRT2 running through the harbour is the Green party's Charlie Bolton. There are murmurings that it may be best to leave tribal loyalties behind for this year, run the risk of being spoken to by men in sandals, and vote Green, even if it does mean having to put up with a diet of lentils and lectures about carbon footprints, wind panels and solar turbines for the next 3 years. For once, Thursday's election is likely to be interesting. Sadly, I am disenfranchised, as my ward doesn't come up for 2 years.

Bristol City Council remains No Overall Control.

Mark Wright (LD) has held on to his seat in Cabot ward where the turnout was a shockingly low 17%. Elsewhere in the city there have been gains for Labour, who are now, once again, the largest party on the council. The Greens have doubled their representation in the council chamber, having gained another two seats. The Conservatives gained a couple of seats, but lost another couple so their representation on the council remains unchanged. As for the Liberal Democrats, not a particularly good election for them. They lost 9 seats. Their deputy leader, Dr Jon Rogers, lost his seat to the Greens and only managed third place behind the Labour candidate. The LibDems are no longer the largest party on the council. It'll be interesting to see whether they may try to retain a modicum of power by doing deals with the Conservatives.

Elsewhere, congratulations go to Somali refugee Hibaq Jama who won the Lawrence Hill ward for Labour, gaining over 50% of the vote. Proof, if it were needed, that you can settle in this diverse and tolerant city and engage in local politics. One of her opponents made great play on his 'I was born and raised in Bristol' credentials. Like that should even be relevant. By the way, councillor Jama's ward includes Stapleton Road station. 

In my ward, Kingsweston, we've elected the only Independent on the council, who narrowly beat the Labour candidate. The Liberal Democrats who previously held the seat, were pushed into third place.

[trainer]

Re Red Squirrel's comments.

I think you must have posted your edit and additional remarks after I had started to reply and then posted my response.  I didn't see an alert to the edit.  I can see the irony of your points now and I think we're in agreement.  Fear of crime is a general issue for many who choose not to use city transport and security of trams/trains/buses should be part of any plans for all modes.  Hope that ends that confusion. 

As for the BRT^▸ (Bus Rapid Transit) specifically, I think this may be an interesting point to watch (from the sidelines in my case) as the Mayor and newly elected Bristol City Council thrash it out.  I do hope common sense railroads political expediency into submission and lines are laid in the city centre connecting to us here in deepest (and after midnight, darkest) North Somerset.

edited to correct typo

[Chris from Nailsea]

Elsewhere, congratulations go to Somali refugee Hibaq Jama who won the Lawrence Hill ward for Labour, gaining over 50% of the vote. Proof, if it were needed, that you can settle in this diverse and tolerant city and engage in local politics. One of her opponents made great play on his 'I was born and raised in Bristol' credentials. Like that should even be relevant. By the way, councillor Jama's ward includes Stapleton Road station. 

I think that's worth noting - and, just for the record, Stapleton Road station is one of the lesser causes of concern to the Severn Beach Line PACT (Police And Communities Together) team.  There are generally more problems at, just for example, Redland or Clifton Down, in terms of 'anti-social behaviour' likely to discourage any casual users of those railway stations from returning.