Inquiry opens into £50m bendy bus route

“And don't get us started on the lack of trains.....”

“The only solution to reduce our traffic is to reduce bus fares.

Cheep bus service will encourage more people to leave their cars at home.

Its too expensive to travel by bus and train on a daily basis.”

“@Chipnum - "This video will disprove the often posted myth that articulated buses (and now trams apparrently) are confined to straight wide streets and would be unsuitable for Bristol's narrow streets with tight corners."


Unfortunately we have a group of transport planners in Bristol who think that they can sit at their computers and work out turning circles from the plans of the city. This is where they get things wrong.

I recently received a set of plans from the GBBN Project Manager which apparently justified the road modifications around Straits Parade demonstrating that large lorries, removal vans, etc could still access the residential roads nearby.

The turning circles looked fine on the plans UNTIL parked cars were added then the plans just served to demonstrate why the GBBN project has become such a disaster in Fishponds and that the Project Manager hadn't got a clue!”

“I often think that the "trams won't fit our streets" argument seems to overlook the fact that they fitted perfectly well when we had a very popular and efficient tram service well within living memory. Not to mention that many of our streets were considerably narrower, had tighter corners, etc. I'd love to see trams back on our streets, but being realistic it ain't gonna happen any time soon, is it?

I'm not actually opposed to bendy buses per se, provided they (or whatever form BRT ends up taking) justify the investment by doing what the system's actually supposed to do to, i.e. be punctual, reliable and affordable. No reason they can't mesh properly with an existing-railway-based metro system, especially if they get the Temple Meads stop sorted out properly. That would be the ideal, surely? Easing up street-usage and (hopefully) breaking the public-transport stranglehold a certain body currently holds (yes, I know who also runs many trains in the area, but if the council takes control from the off, with tight, run-it-properly-or-don't-run-it-at-all contracts, and then monitors and enforces it rigidly, it really could work well.)

Which I think we all deserve after the 25 years of grollocks we've had to put up with.”

“This video will disprove the often posted myth that articulated buses (and now trams apparrently) are confined to straight wide streets and would be unsuitable for Bristol's narrow streets with tight corners.

Here we see articulated trolleybuses (including bi-artics - 3 sections) and multi-section trams in Zurich operating perfectly safely in streets not dissimilar to Bristol. The trolleybuses are not part of a BRT system, they are just standard European city buses. Note how many doors they have for speedy boarding and alighting. No waiting ages at the bus stop as people file off the bus, then people file on one by one paying their cash fare and getting change from the driver.

http://tinyurl.com/7mgauyx”

“ceembee

Can I say how much I appreciate your well thought out and considered reply. I asked a straight question and for once I got a straight reply, thank you, if only my point of view got more responses like yours.

The report says that there have been 204 objections and 35 groups have made representations. How many people do these groups actually represent? In particular I focus on Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance who repeatedly use the Post to pump their view of the transport world which seems to consist of trains and more trains, errr and nothing else.

It could be that a handful of people could hold the rest of Bristol to ransom because if they win this then be sure that the other schemes will fall. It feels very much like the Bristol City stadium project where a handful of people want to stop something that the vast majority of Bristolians want and feel they need. I would concede that BRT appears far from popular but it is the only game in town in terms of sorting out Bristol's transport woes. If you've sat in a traffic jam today there is something being proposed that just might help that situation but still in Bristol we have people who want to stop progress, shame on them. Is it more than a co-incidence that this scheme runs through the same area as the proposed Ashton Vale stadium, same people objecting, I don't know but what do you think?

So once again I ask how many members does Transport for Greater Bristol Alliance have, who do they represent and just who are they? I won't hold my breath because I know I will be met with silence.”

“If you understand what BRT is you will understand that articulated buses are particularly suited. BRT is rapid transit, as are modern light rail or tram systems. This means high capacity vehicles designed for rapid boarding and alighting to minimise the time spent at stops, we're talking 30 seconds to allow people to get on and off. That means more than one door. An articulated bus can have three or four doors, and if BRT is implemented correctly in Bristol you will be able to board or alight at any door, swiping your smartcard as you do so.

Hopefully the BRT buses will also be diesel-electric hybrids. These would reduce emissions and also noise levels. Here is a video clip of a British built (by Optare) hybrid bus in operation in Manchester on their free city centre shuttle.

http://tinyurl.com/776yfzx

Photo
http://tinyurl.com/6s5ulee

These buses (Optare Versas) would be my favoured design if standard single deck buses are chosen for Bristol's BRT as they have a very stylish design which differs from anything else currently operating.

Ideally at some point in the future, if Bristol's BRT system is successful and more routes are added it would be technically possible to introduce trolleybuses. Leeds currently has an application for a trolleybus BRT scheme in with the Dept for Transport.

To get an idea what I have in mind take a look at this video of modern trolleybuses in Lyon . A BRT system in Bristol operated by vehicles of this quality would do the city proud. Notice how quiet they are.

http://tinyurl.com/7jgpe6v”

“Pipsbeard - Blimey you seem to have missed the reason I came to my conclusion. I may well object to trams too but would depend on route & type of tram being used. I have seen and used plenty of trams on the continent and noted that they are almost without exception used on fairly straight wide boulevard type roads (an example of this is the tram at Blackpool) and I did not notice them on narrow streets with plenty of corners such as those that predominate in central Bristol. Some of the larger single deckers & also double deckers can struggle to make bends and corners in the central area of Bristol as did the bendy bus in Bath - got it now?”

“"Came across my first Bendy bus on Monday, literally straight across as they can't make tight left turns it came right across the other side of the Rd, lucky I was taking notice as the driver seemed to be focused on his inside mirror."

Bristol has had bendy buses on the Bath Road park and ride for over a year and on the Portway park and ride since April. They don't seem to have much difficulty negotiating such 'obstacles' as the Centre or Temple Circus without cutting across other lanes of traffic as the rear section almost, but not quite, follows the line of the front section. Bristol Airport has had bendy buses for years operating the car park shuttle and these have to drive 180 degrees around a very tight roundabout near the terminal which they accomplish quite comfortably.

Bendy buses are used very successfully in Europe. For instance, there is a route for several miles along the front of Lake Geneva between Montreux and Vevey using trolley bendy buses which have to negotiate extremely crowded streets in this extremely popular holiday area.”

“BRT is a real width-hog, it would involve a lot of bulldozing.

Pity there is no attempt at investigating something a bit more forward thinking like Monometro with overhead trains 10m above ground:-

http://tinyurl.com/8yxjshd

You would'nt need to find room on the ground to shoehorn it in, it could run above existing roads. A loop round the docks would be great sightseeing for tourists too.”