A report on the Weca overview and scrutiny committee on Monday, September 16, 2024.
By Local Democracy Reporter Adam Postans: Long-awaited plans for a Bristol region mass transit system will not even begin to happen until the 2030s, it has been revealed.
Outline proposals for the project will take three years to complete, followed by the same amount of time to complete a full business case.
It means no actual work will take place before the end of the decade, regardless of whether it will be trams, dedicated bus lanes or anything else, now that an underground has been ruled out because of costs.
Metro mayor Dan Norris and the leaders of Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Bath & North East Somerset councils will be asked to approve the remaining £13million to develop the plans at a meeting of the West of England Combined Authority (Weca) committee on Friday, September 20.
They approved the first stage – the strategic outline case – towards creating a major public transport service in July, and the decision this week would take it forwards.
Bristol city Cllr Toby Wells (Green, Knowle) told the Weca overview and scrutiny committee on Monday, September 16, where the issue was discussed, that the project, formerly called Future4WEST and now renamed WEST Rapid Transport, was very important and must progress.
But he said: “The question really is why is it going to take so long?
“We are talking about three years for the outline business case and then the full business case in 2030, and then anything actually getting built happens after that.
“What options have we considered to speed up that work which at this point is desk work, it’s studies, why so long?”
Weca strategic director of infrastructure David Gibson replied: “It’s an incredibly detailed project.
“We have whittled it down already to 14 options and then, if we now exclude the significant tunnelling options when there were in excess of 70 options, technically there is a great deal of work to do.
“The impact on the region is significant as well, so there is just an enormous amount of evidence that needs to be gone through, options appraisals and evaluation of data, etc.
“This is a very significant project and unfortunately can’t just be built overnight.
“We’re delighted to actually get this moving now, so we will do everything we can working with whoever wins the work to do the outline business case to do it as quickly as possible.”
A report to Friday’s committee said: “It is notable when compared to other cities and population centres nationally and internationally, that the West of England region does not benefit from an enhanced public transport network.
“In addition, in October 2023 the National Infrastructure Commission published the outcome of their second National Infrastructure Assessment which identified the Bristol city region as one of the areas that Government should invest £22billion in to improve public transport and unlock economic growth as it is a regionally important economic hub that faces significant transport capacity constraints.
“Delivering a step change in the region’s public transport capacity is a critical next step in achieving the region’s strategic goals.
“We have ambitious plans to improve bus services and make the most of our rail network.
“But the scale of the challenge to reach net zero, to unlock future prosperity, reduce congestion and tackle entrenched inequality demands new and dedicated ways for people to move around the region.
“A segregated public transport system will enable transformative change in the region.
“Due to the strategic importance of WEST Rapid Transport and the contribution that it will make in achieving this change for the region, it is vital that the project is progressed.”
Note: the main image shows new rolling stock promised in May before the election by the Government – some of which will be used in this region. Details at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-trains-to-be-rolled-out-across-the-country-alongside-48-billion-investment-to-upgrade-tracks
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