Doubts cast on bendy bus plan by mayoral hopefuls
SEVEN of the candidates to become Bristol's elected mayor have raised doubts over the controversial bendy bus scheme.
Three of the candidates at a hustings meeting in Broadmead last night even said they did not support the £50 million route into the city centre from the Long Ashton park and ride site at all.
One of these was architect George Ferguson, an independent candidate who said the alternatives had not been properly examined.
"I just think that the wool has been pulled over the eyes of the politicians by some of the experts," he said.
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"I am clearly against BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) and I want the mandate from the voters to be able to renegotiate how we spend those hundreds of millions of pounds on a system which fits Bristol's growth and history."
But Jon Rogers, the Liberal Democrat candidate who supported BRT with reservations, warned: "If we decide that we don't want a rapid bus system, then let us be quite clear that the Government would be more than happy to take the money back and spend it elsewhere."
The three-mile route, which would use segregated bus lanes with low concrete walls to guide the buses on some sections, is due to open in 2015. It would be the first of a network of bendy bus routes aimed at easing chronic congestion in the city.
Daniella Radice (Green Party) and former Tory councillor Spud Murphy (Independent) both said they were against the bendy bus route.
The candidates were asked from the floor whether they supported the route, known as BRT2.
Mr Murphy had responded by saying: "Yes, without reservations."
But afterwards he said that he was against the bendy bus system and therefore should have said "No".
Geoff Gollop (Con) said "Yes, with significant reservations".
He told the Post afterwards: "In principle, I agree, because if we go back on these proposals, the funding might be ring-fenced, but it will take another three years to work out what to do with the money."
Labour transport spokesman Mark Bradshaw, who was standing in for his party's candidate, Marvin Rees, said he did not support the bendy bus route "in its present form".
He said afterwards that the original scheme was a much more segregated system, whereas the latest version was much more "watered down", because so much more of the route was using existing bus lanes.
"It's more of a conventional type of bus using existing bus lanes, whereas what we want to see is an alternative form of transport using much more segregated lanes," said Mr Bradshaw.
Tim Collins (Independent) replied by saying, "No, not in its present form".
He said later that he was not against the scheme in principle but he would prefer to see an electric trolley bus rather than a bendy bus, and more segregated track.
All the candidates were clearly in favour of creating an independent transport authority to unlock the powers needed to sort out the city's awful transport problems.
Dr Rogers, who used to be the city's transport leader, said he wanted to work with neighbouring councils to find transport solutions but he said Bristol would have to go it alone if necessary, because it had been held back too often in the past.
He explained the reason why an ITA had been resisted by neighbouring councils was because they feared the quality of their bus services would go down and fares would go up.
Dr Rogers said: "The bottom line is that if we had a transport authority, our fares would go down and the services would improve."
Mr Ferguson said the West of England Partnership, which brought together the four councils in the former Avon area to deal with transport issues, had been a disaster. "There's no question that it is not going to deliver in its present form," he said.
Mr Gollop said he was fully committed to an ITA but neighbouring authorities saw Bristol as a threat and it was therefore important to work with them.
Mr Bradshaw said the key to a new "transport board" was working with neighbouring authorities.
Mr Collins said he was elected to the former Avon County Council in 1989 and yet 23 years later, there is still no integrated transport system.
Ms Radice said transport was the biggest issue to tackle in Bristol. She said it did not make sense that our roads were so crowded with vehicles yet our buses were often empty.
Comments
by Brizz_Tony
Sunday, September 16 2012, 12:10PM
“LordClifton,
I sort of agree with you, noble Sir, but it wouldn't cost £1 billion - not unless we let Bristol City Council or West of England Partnership design and build it. I would be surprised if the stupid £49 million BRT2 scheme costs less than £60 million by the time it is finished. Look at how popular the newest scheme in the country isn't http://tinyurl.com/96h8luu and you will see the potential for a complete and utter white heffalump. Concreting over old rail routes will always prove that it would be better to have built a railway from the outset. The fiasco in Cambridge shows this clearly. The disused railway from St Ives to Cambridgeshire was concreted over for a guided busway. It has been well used since it opened, but that doesn't mean that a railway wouldn't have been just as popular. The cost of reinstating the railway would have been comparable to that of reinstating Portishead - the lines are of similar length - which has been put at around £36 million in the GRIP 3 report. Network Rail estimated the Cambridgeshire link at £100 million, probably because they were less keen on the idea at the time. Even so, had the railway been rebuilt, it would have been a quick process. The BRT was scheduled to open in April 2009, but actually started in August 2011. The cost was a staggering £181 million.
More worryingly for advocates of the stupid £49 million BRT2 route is that the public enquiry for the Cambridge scheme, similar to the one just held for the stupid £49 million BRT2, was held a whole 7 YEARS before the route opened. If this happens here, and the start date has already slipped by 7 months even before the inspector has given his verdict, we will not see a bus on the route before 2019 - two years after the rail service to Portishead begins.”
by LordClifton
Saturday, September 15 2012, 11:22PM
“please can we now have a TRAM system with the £1b we were promised by Central Government for agreeing to elect a Mayor?”
by Brizz_Tony
Friday, September 14 2012, 11:41AM
“Richard34,
You say the kindest things sometimes. Yes, my transport talents are wasted. Everybody's are in this area, where "consultation" means deciding what you want to do, asking everyone for their views, ignoring them, and carrying on anyway with madcap schemes like the stupid £49 million BRT2. They wonder why the schemes are not popular with the poor bl**dy council tax payers. I can tell them - this whole thing is badly designed, badly implemented, and a public relations disaster.”
by Richard34
Thursday, September 13 2012, 10:44PM
“Hi Brizz_Tony,
Your comments are very good and it's nice to hear from someone who really knows their stuff and is passionate about the subject. Personally I'd like to see BRT2 but with changes, especially in Stapleton where filter roads are needed for the new developments in UWE i.e. the campus expansion including the conference centre and the stadium but I don't agree with the park & ride scheme here, it needs to be next to UWE and and another closer to the start of the M32 as well as the existing one which has been built early at Parkway Station, all of these should be in South Glos. Stapleton/ Begbrook is definitely the wrong place for a park & ride but it is the right place for a bus stop along the route.
More thought is needed in places..”
by Brizz_Tony
Thursday, September 13 2012, 6:54PM
“Richard34,
Poor old much-maligned Richard Beeching! He was controversial from the start because he was paid more than double the Prime Minister's salary. He had a number of problems to address, all involving huge sums of cash. Railways were losing money hand over fist. Passenger numbers were falling as car ownership rose. A lot of services were steam hauled, using engines that would need to be replaced. Hence the Beeching Cuts. He was reacting to a problem of the 1960s, using 1960s technology and understanding. I am sure that had he known then what we know now, a number of lines would have been spared. Chief amongst them would Bath via Fishponds and Staple Hill. We cannot go on blaming him, but already several of the closed lines have been reopened - none so far in the West of England, although Portishead will be a good example. West Yorkshire Metro has led to 20 stations being reopened so far, with more to come. Manchester has used some of the closed routes in building its highly successful Metrolink. South Wales has also reversed many of the cuts. The common factor in all of these are governed by an integrated transport authority of one kind or another. It's a no brainer for Bristol and surrounds.
BRT1, from the northern fringe to Temple Meads and the Centre will work. A lot of the infrastructure is already in place. That is the only route that crosses from one authority area to another. If that is built, South Glos will have no axe to grind if Bristol cancels the stupid £49 million BRT2 route and the extension to Hengrove - it makes no odds to them. There has been a major shift in government thinking since work on BRT began - see http://tinyurl.com/8uvale7 for detail. In "Green Light for Light Rail", published in September 2011, just as the final incorrect figures were being massaged in the "Best and Final Bid" for BRT, the DfT showed itself convinced that light rail would succeed where buses had failed:
"Whether it is labelled light rapid transit, light rail or tram, this mode of transport is popular with passengers. It is also good for economic growth and good for reducing carbon, both key objectives of the Coalition Government.
During more than a century of development, light rail has proved itself an effective and efficient means of taking large numbers of passengers directly into and around the heart of a city, connecting communities and supporting businesses. The fact that, even against a uniquely difficult financial backdrop, we have announced since May 2010 our financial support for a number of light rail extensions in England demonstrates very clearly our belief in the benefits that light rail can provide"
Not my words, but the goverment's.
A BRT route opened in Hampshire in April 2012. It made the news yesterday: http://tinyurl.com/96h8luu Hardly encouraging.
We will have to pay a quarter of the capital cost of the stupid £49 million BRT2 route, plus the cost of any overruns, if I understand correctly. The Cambridge BRT scheme was originally costed at £54 million, but eventually cost over £180 million. The council have put aside £6.5 million for a court case against the contractor to recover £60 million. It has been scheduled for 2014. The route opened over 2 years late. Heaven help us if the same happens here.”
by DM_Fishponds
Thursday, September 13 2012, 5:02PM
“@Richard34 - "However Bristol is a almost the Green Capital of Europe and a must see world city according to DK Travel Books.."
Q. Is Bristol the 'Green Capital of Europe''?
A. No, Bristol is not the 'Green Capital of Europe'.
Perhaps DK will mention Bristol's Bendy-buses in its next edition. I wonder if they will recommend them or advise visitors to avoid them?
@Fuzzhead, yes, bonkers and obsessed. Just humour him!”
by Fuzzhead
Thursday, September 13 2012, 4:15PM
“You're beginning to sound bonkers, Richard34, even a little obsessed.”
by Richard34
Thursday, September 13 2012, 2:23PM
“However Bristol is a almost the Green Capital of Europe and a must see world city according to DK Travel Books..”
by Richard34
Thursday, September 13 2012, 2:15PM
“Brilliant! Nice one David. I stole those Y Fronts off your line some years ago.. couldn't resist, they glow in the dark lol..
Hero to hero ah...
@robynj88 that rat run that you've just described has been the standard route for all local people who know their way around for 25 years. Nothing to do with GBBN but nice try. I don't suffer in Staple Hill, but elderly people who I know do. But they go there anyway because it's a great little shopping area.
@Sheppas, of course, let's move on, just wanted to hear the truth. 100's of people are working every hour possible on Bristol's transport, let's try and support them.
@Brizz_Tony there was a time when Bristol has it all... Dr Beeching put the finishing touches to that though. Today Bristol is a Cycling City, we're well known for this. Rome isn't. But in fairness Rome is one city that Bristol can never compete with, there aren't many in the world but Rome is only comparable to London.”
by Brennus
Thursday, September 13 2012, 1:16PM
“Brizz Tony -
Your comment at 5.35pm yesterday and especially your 7 points to improve public transport:
Absolutely spot on! Couldn't have said it better myself. Your initiatives would transform transport provision in our city.
Unfortunately, they're far too sensible for our illustrious elected representatives. Instead, they prefer to chase the deeply flawed BRT fallacy (except, possibly, the North Fringe to Hengrove route). BRT2 from LA P&R is an especially daft idea. I simply can't understand why councillors/the WEP transport team can't see this. It's quite literally spending money for the sake of it.”