Another British bike path threatened?

More pressure on Bristol's cyclists from bus lane proposals? (BikeRadar)

A popular Bristol cycleway could be under threat from a proposal to create a so-called Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) route.  

The proposal has been made by  the West of England Partnership (WEP) which is comprised the unitary authorities of Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire  plus a range of social, economic and environmental partners.  It is part of a plan to tackle the problem of traffic congestion in the Greater Bristol urban area by encouraging motorists out of their cars and onto alternative modes of transport, ironically, including bicycles.

One of the eight new proposed bus routes would take commuters out of Bristol city centre towards Long Ashton and would involve using a former railway bridge near the Create Centre currently accessible only to cyclists and pedestrians.

The WEP has already felt the wrath of local cyclists after it floated the idea of  building a BRT on part of the Bristol to Bath cycle path. That project was dropped after loud and vociferous opposition from cyclists but not has been totally abandoned according to the Partnership.

Speaking about the latest proposal, a WEP spokesperson told the Bristol Evening Post: "It's not the fixed or the final route, it's one of the routes being considered. What normally happens in these processes is that the most expensive route is looked at and other routes are also worked up.

"It's one of the routes which could be consulted on in the future.”

• Back to top
• Email to a friend