Sustrans opposes Bristol bus route

Ladies & Gentlemen,

You may find the information below of some interest, which has been taken from the latest newsletter issued by the cycling related charity Life Cycle UK.

Regards,

Steve Tyler (WoE PTEG Partner & South Glos Cycle Forum member).

Goodbye Railway Path?
Plans are afoot to turn the Bristol & Bath Railway Path, one of the UKs most popular cycle tracks, into a guided busway. The plans put forward by a consortium of local councils will see the trees and vegetation cleared, many of the bridges raised and a concrete channel constructed along which buses will run. Walkers and cyclists will be given a strip of space alongside. One of the officials behind the scheme said, "It will help transform public transport in Bristol and its surrounding sub region, and I believe the vast majority of people in the city will welcome it. We are aware of the concerns of some cyclists, although we believe many will welcome the improvement to public transport." The railway path was one of Britain's first traffic-free routes created for walkers, cyclists and people with disabilities. More than 2-million journeys are made using the path every year. It also functions as a wildlife sanctuary, green corridor, linear park, trim-trail, playground and picnic area.

e-Petition
If you would rather the railway path stayed as it is, you might want to sign the e-petition by clicking here

Evening Post Article
The link below will take you to an article in the Evening Post dated 18th January, which also provides an opportunity to read and submit comments.
Click here

Facebook Group
Facebook users can access all sorts of useful documents and find out what Bristol's cyclists are saying by joining the group 'I do not want the Bristol to Bath Cycle Path to turn into a Bus Lane
Click here

Map of Cycle Path Click here

Public Meeting - Tuesday 5th February
There will be a public meeting to discuss this on Tuesday 5th February at Easton Community Centre at 7.30 p.m. For directions click here

Are sustrans not concerned that the BRT route at the Bath end (along the disused railway) will evntually link with the proposed plans for a BRT at the Bristol end of the cycle track? Surely if the council allows cyclists to use the BRT route at Bath end, they will be expecting cyclists to eventually share the whole length of the Bristol to Bath cycle track with buses or simmilar?

I would personally love to see the disused railway used as a cycle/pedestrian track, but believe it will be way to narrow for cyclists, pedestrians and buses. Cyclists at pinch points surely will have to share the bus lane. It certainly won't be child friendly.

Surely sustrans should be campaigning to create green, safe cycle/pedestrian ways which can be used by families as well as experienced cyclists. From previous meetings I think it is clear that the majority of people currently campaigning against the propsed plans for the Bath BRT would support a bus free cycle route.

Many people who live near the track currently use it for recreational purposes.It is a green lane/footpath which links community. They are not campaigning because they do not want the track to be used for anything at all, they just want to retain and make better use of what little green they have left in an already over industrialised area.