Campaigners are urging the public to back their battle to reopen rail links around Bristol.

They launched a campaign yesterday to get members of the public to send postcards to the West of England Partnership, which represents the four local councils, Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire and Bath & North-East Somerset.

The Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways (FOSBR), which successfully pushed for improvements to the Severn Beach line in 2006, wants to see Government investment into other railway lines around the city, including the reopening of the Portishead line to Bristol and the Henbury Loop.

Julie Boston, of FOSBR, told the Evening Post: "We are distributing 3,000 postcards so people can send them in before a deadline of November 21.

"We're calling on the partnership to put pressure on the South-West Regional Assembly and the Regional Development Agency to include the Portishead and Henbury Loop passenger-freight line in their transport spending bid. The assembly meets on November 27."

North Somerset Council has already announced plans to buy three miles of track into the middle of Portishead for £75,000, with a view to running trains to the city centre by 2014.

For the new stations on the line, at Portishead, Ashton Gate and Pill, up to £15 million would be needed while operating costs could be £2.4m a year, of which up to £900,000 could come from the council.

The Henbury Loop is a freight line which runs between Avonmouth and Bristol Parkway but campaigners want to see it opening to passenger trains as well.

Conversion would require a new station at Henbury and widening of the track to allow passenger trains to run alongside freight run by Bristol Port Company.

Again, millions of pounds would be needed from the Government, First Great Western and Network Rail to get such a link running.

It would also require constant subsidies from local authorities. Bristol City Council spends £400,000 a year to let frequent, regular trains run from Severn Beach to the city centre.

The money would need to be bid for by the regional assembly after recommendations from the West of England Partnership (WEP) of all four councils in the greater Bristol area.

WEP is backing the Portishead to Bristol scheme but believes the Henbury Loop proposal will not be feasible for a few years yet.

Instead it is suggesting an improved, regular, cross- Bristol service from Yate to Weston-super-Mare would be more realistic and popular.

These two schemes will be proposed when the assembly bids for money to the Government later this year.

Julia Dean, spokeswoman for the WEP, said: "The Portishead line and the improved Yate to Weston-super-Mare services are our priority because we believe passenger numbers are likely to be greater."

She said the Henbury Loop was in the long term plans.